Here We Are
by 09sarahbean
Summary: The threat of Lord Voldemort looms over Liza Jones and the rest of the students at Hogwarts. Still, life (and school) goes on. Then Liza's twin brother Harry Potter finds a Potions textbook with messages in the margins from a mysterious Half-Blood Prince. Sequel to Nowhere Kids.
1. Chapter 1 The Americans Are Coming

_**A/N: And here it is, story number 6! If you haven't read any of the other stories in this series, I suggest starting with the first one, called "Welcome to the World". I'm writing this story assuming you've read the others in the series (and Harry Potter).**_

 _ **Also, I don't post on a schedule, it's just whenever I finish a chapter.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 1 – The Americans Are Coming**

"Liza!" Elizabeth Jones looked up from her packing. It had been a week since the end of her fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She had gone home with her friends, the Weasley family. Ron Weasley was one of her best friends and in the same year as her at Hogwarts. Ginny Weasley was Ron's younger sister, a year behind him and Liza in school.

When Liza was eleven years old, she had been living in America with her adoptive parents, Dan and Sue Jones. She was there when she had been invited to go to school at Hogwarts; since she had been born in Britain, her name had been automatically listed to attend Hogwarts. She had met the Weasleys and her other two best friends, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter.

Then, in her third year, she had found out that Harry Potter was her twin brother. She was forbidden from telling him, to keep both him and herself safe. At the end of their fourth year, Lord Voldemort, who was responsible for killing Harry's and Liza's parents, had returned to his full strength.

At the end of June, just a few weeks earlier, Harry had led a group of his friends into the Ministry of Magic, sure that his godfather Sirius Black was in danger. Voldemort had shown up, and the Ministry had no choice but to accept that he had returned. It was then that Liza was able to tell Harry her secret.

Now, after a week at the Burrow, Liza's adoptive parents were moving from American to Britain. Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts and an influential leader in the Wizarding world, had explained that they were in danger now that Liza's secret had been revealed. It had been decided that they would move to Britain and into one of the Order of the Phoenix's safe houses.

"Liza, are you up there?" Molly Weasley, Ron's and Ginny's mother, was calling up the stairs.

"Yes!" Liza said, throwing the last few articles of clothing into her trunk. "Sorry, Mrs. Weasley, just finishing up." Then she stood up and went down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"There you are," Mrs. Weasley said, beaming. "Your parents should be here any minutes, I figured you'd want to be near the fireplace when they arrive."

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley," Liza said. "Do you need any help with anything?" Mrs. Weasley was preparing dinner for when Sue and Dan arrived.

"No, I think I should be good—" Mrs. Weasley started.

"'Ello!" a voice announced as the front door to the Burrow opened. Liza turned to see Bill Weasley, the eldest of the Weasley children, entering the house, guiding a young woman in ahead of him.

"Oh," Mrs. Weasley said, trying to sound cheerful. "Hello Bill, hello Fleur." Fleur Delacour had been the champion from Beauxbatons during the Triwizard Tournament two years previously. She had come to Britain to work for Gringotts and to help improve her English. At Gringotts, she met Bill, and the two of them seemed to hit it off. They had just gotten engaged in the past week, something that Mrs. Weasley wasn't particularly keen about.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Weasley," Fleur said, flashing her a wide smile. "Hello, Liza."

"Hi, Fleur," Liza said, smiling slightly. She didn't have as much of a problem with Fleur as Mrs. Weasley and Ginny did.

"Hi, Mom," Bill said, walking over to his mother and kissing her cheek. "It smells great in here."

"Yes, simply divine," Fleur said, breezing into the room behind her fiancé.

"Thank you," Mrs. Weasley said distractedly. "Liza, could you please go and see where Ron and Ginny disappeared to?" Liza nodded and stepped out into the garden. She could see two figures on broomsticks in the distance. She walked the short distance to the paddock the Weasleys kept for playing mock Quidditch games.

"Ginny! Ron!" she shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Your mom wants you to come in and get ready for dinner!" Ginny and Ron landed, looking as though they were arguing about something.

"I told you, you're still hovering to your right, leaving the left goal completely open!" Ginny insisted. "I'm just trying to _help_ you!"

"Well, maybe _you_ should trying playing Keeper some time," Ron retorted. "It's not that easy!"

"Okay, enough Quidditch talk," Liza said. "Come on, I'm sure your mom could use some help. Oh, and Fleur is here." Ginny groaned immediately, but Ron perked up.

"I didn't know Fleur was coming," he said. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"She's marrying our brother, not you," she said. Then she looked at Liza and asked, "Is Hermione here yet?"

"She wasn't here when I came outside to get you two," Liza reported. "But she may have gotten here while you two have been arguing." She led the way back to the house, where Bill and Fleur were sitting at the table chatting with Mrs. Weasley.

A minute after Liza, Ron, and Ginny had entered the room, the fire in the fireplace turned green. There was a loud whooshing noise, and Hermione toppled out of the fire.

"Hermione!" Liza and Ginny exclaimed happily. They both helped her off the floor.

"Oh!" Mrs. Weasley gasped, having been distracted by the dinner she was making. "Good afternoon, Hermione! I almost forgot that you were coming tonight, too."

"Hello, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione replied. "Hi, Ron, Liza, Ginny."

"I think you remember Fleur Delacour?" Bill asked, waving at Hermione. Hermione frowned in confusion but nodded her confirmation. "Well, we're engaged," Bill continued, smiling brightly. "The wedding is going to be next summer. You'll be invited, of course."

"Wow!" Hermione said. "Well—Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Fleur said, beaming. Before conversation could continue, there was a knock on the front door. Mrs. Weasley hurried to answer it. A moment later, she led her husband Arthur Weasley, Dan, and Sue into the room.

"Mom!" Liza exclaimed. "Dad!" She hurried over to them and hugged each of them tightly. Over the past few years, she hadn't seen much of her parents. She had spent the last few summers in Britain with her friends rather than returning to America.

"Hi, sweetie," Sue said. "You look so grown up." Liza blushed slightly.

"We've got everything settled in at the new house," Dan informed his daughter. "But you know that you can stay here if you'd rather do that."

"No, it's okay, Dad," Liza said. "Besides, the Burrow is just a Floo away."

"That is true," Dan said, nodding. Then he and Sue greeted Mrs. Weasley.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Sue asked. Mrs. Weasley shook her head and directed everyone to the kitchen table. Soon, dinner was served. Everyone complimented Mrs. Weasley, who looked very pleased.

After dinner, Liza, Sue, and Dan said goodbye to the Weasleys and Hermione before departing to their new home. Liza used the Floo, and she found herself toppling out of a fireplace in a small, cozy sitting room. Sue, who had gone through the Floo before Liza, held her arms out.

"Home, sweet home," she announced. "It's not a very big place, but it's definitely big enough for our needs." Dan appeared in the fire, smiling at his wife and daughter.

"So what do you think?" he asked Liza.

"I think I need a tour," Liza replied. Sue and Dan obliged, showing her around the house. Next to the sitting room was a kitchen with room for a table, but there was no formal dining room. Upstairs there were two bedrooms and a bathroom.

"But here's the interesting part," Dan said, when they had returned downstairs. He went to a door that Liza had assumed was a closet. When he opened it, Liza saw stairs that headed down.

"What is this?" Liza asked, stepping through the door. She went down the stairs to find a large, warm, carpeted room.

"Well, this is a safe house," Dan said, shrugging. "I think it's just extra room in case a lot of people need to stay here for a little while. There's a bathroom, too, through there." He pointed to another door. Then he and Liza went back upstairs.

"So, do you want some help getting your trunk upstairs to your room?" Dan asked.

"Yes, please," Liza replied. Dan waved his wand at her trunk, levitating it up the stairs and into Liza's room. She followed behind him, carrying the cat carrier with her cat Boots nestled inside.

"Thanks, Dad," Liza said, smiling. Dan left the room, and Liza opened the cat carrier to let the tuxedo cat out. Then Liza got ready for bed. After brushing her teeth, she got into her old bed that Dan and Sue had brought over from America. Boots hopped up onto the bed and curled up next to Liza.

"Good night, Boots," Liza murmured. Then she laid down and fell asleep.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Over the next week, Liza enjoyed the time she had catching up with her parents. When she wasn't spending time with them, she would Floo over to the Burrow and hang out with Ron, Ginny, and Hermione. But nothing excited Liza more than the owl she received halfway through the week.

 _Dear Liza,_

 _If you are interested, I would like to take you to Harry's current place of residence to introduce you to your aunt and uncle. I will come to call at about a quarter to eleven P.M. this coming Friday, and we shall journey to Privet Drive together._

 _Also, I request help from yourself and Harry in a matter I need to attend to after we have met with your aunt and uncle. I shall explain this more fully when I see you. Then I shall be taking Harry to the Burrow, where he's been invited to stay for the remainder of the summer._

 _Kindly send your answer by return of this owl. Hoping to see you this Friday._

 _I am, yours most sincerely,_

 _Albus Dumbledore_

"Mom!" Liza called from the living room. Sue stuck her head into the room from the kitchen.

"Yes, dear?" she asked.

"Professor Dumbledore needs my assistance with something this Friday," Liza said. "He wants to take me to meet my aunt and uncle, as well. It might be a bit late, however. He's not coming until nearly eleven P.M."

"Of course, if he needs you for something," Sue replied.

"He's planning on dropping Harry off at the Burrow that night," Liza said, handing the letter over to her mom so she could read it herself. "I suppose I could spend the night there so I don't have to Floo back here so late."

"That would be fine by me," Sue replied. "Let me go talk to Mrs. Weasley about it first, to make sure it would be all right."

"Okay," Liza agreed. "I need to send my answer to Dumbledore soon, though."

"I'll just use the fireplace," Sue said. She went to the fire, put her hand into the vase on the mantle, and pulled out a handful of powder. Then she threw it into the fire, which turned green, and knelt onto the floor. "The Burrow!" she announced clearly, and then she stuck her head into fire.

Liza waited patiently as Sue remained on the floor with her head in the fire. A few minutes later, Sue was standing up again, brushing the soot from out of her hair.

"Everything's settled," Sue replied. "She already had everything ready for Harry, and she said it would be no problem to have you stay over, as well."

"Cool!" Liza said. "I'll write Dumbledore an answer back right now."

She took the owl upstairs with her and set it onto her desk. Then she pulled out a quill and a spare bit of parchment. She quickly scrawled out a response to Dumbledore, folded up the letter, and gave it back to the owl. Then, after Liza opened her window, the owl flew off. Liza watched it for a while, the excitement about seeing her twin brother growing. This summer was shaping up to be a much better summer than the last.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

On Friday, Liza was so excited that she couldn't sit still. She paced up and down in the sitting room, impatiently waiting for Dumbledore to show up to her house. Sue and Dan sat on the couch, watching their daughter with amused expressions on their faces.

Then, at exactly ten forty-five, there was a knock on the front door. Dan got up and went to answer it.

"Declare yourself," he said firmly, one hand on the wand in his pocket.

"It is I, Dumbledore, here to pick up Liza," the man on the other side of door replied. Dan nodded and pulled the door open, revealing Dumbledore standing on their front stoop.

"Hello, Dan, Sue," Dumbledore said. "Good evening, Liza. Is it all right if I come in for a moment? I have something I'd like to discuss with Liza before we leave for Privet Drive."

"Of course, come on in," Dan replied. Dumbledore swept into the house and followed Sue into the sitting room.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Sue asked as Dumbledore sat on the couch. "Tea? Coffee? Water?"

"No, thank you," Dumbledore answered politely. Then he turned to Liza, who had plopped down into the armchair. Then Liza noticed that there was something wrong with Dumbledore's right hand. It looked withered and shrunken, as though it had been charred.

"Professor, your hand—!" Liza gasped. Dumbledore shook his sleeve over his hand.

"A tale best left for another time," he said kindly but firmly. He cleared his throat and continued, "As you very well know, Voldemort is at large once again. Because of your relationship to Harry, I was hoping that you would allow me to give you extra lessons throughout the coming school year. I would like you to learn Occlumency and possibly other defensive spells that you might not get to learn in your classes. Would you be interested in that?" Liza felt a bit shocked, but she was also slightly excited. Learning defensive spells that she wouldn't have learned otherwise was a huge opportunity.

"Yes, I'd be interested in that," Liza replied.

"Good," Dumbledore said, looking pleased. "I will let you know when the lessons will be. They will not happen on a regular schedule, but I hope to meet with you often enough to help you master Occlumency." Liza nodded in understanding. Dumbledore looked at the watch on his wrist.

"Well, I suppose we should get going," Dumbledore said. "I told Harry we would be there at eleven. Unless there is anything else that needs to be addressed before we leave?"

"I don't think so," Sue said. "She'll be staying over at the Weasleys tonight when you drop Harry off there, as well."

"Very well," Dumbledore said, getting to his feet. "Then I think we shall get going. Liza?" Liza stood up as well and gave both her parents hugs.

"I'll see you guys sometime tomorrow," Liza said. "I love you!"

"We love you too, sweetie," Sue said. "Stay safe." Liza smiled at her reassuringly then followed Dumbledore from the house. The house itself was a few miles away from a village, like the Burrow was. Dumbledore led them a little ways away from the house before he stopped.

"We shall be traveling to Privet Drive by Apparition," he explained. "Since you are not seventeen, you haven't taken your Apparition Test yet, so we will have to use Side-Along Apparition. Have you ever Apparated before?"

"No," Liza replied, shaking her head.

"Well, it's very simple, but it may feel a bit disorienting," Dumbledore warned. He held out his left arm. "You'll need to take my arm." Liza grabbed Dumbledore's arm with both hands.

"Good, good," Dumbledore said. "Hold on tight." Then he revolved on the spot.

Everything went black. Liza felt as though she was being sucked through a very narrow tube. She couldn't breathe, couldn't see, couldn't move—

Then, as quickly as it had began, Liza found herself barely standing on a street in a Muggle suburb. She put her hands on her knees and took deep breaths, trying to get the air back into her lungs. Her stomach lurched dangerously, but nothing came out.

"That was kind of awful," she muttered.

"It does take a bit of getting used to," Dumbledore said. "This way." He started down the street, and Liza hurried after him. They walked for about a block before Dumbledore turned and headed up the front walk to a house. There was a brass number four on the front of the house, gleaming from the light of a nearby streetlamp.

Dumbledore reached the front door and rang the bell. The door was wrenched open, and Harry's uncle stood before Dumbledore and Liza.

"Good evening," Dumbledore said pleasantly. "You must be Mr. Dursley. I daresay Harry has told you I would be coming for him?" There was a noise behind the man in the doorway, and Liza looked over his shoulder to see Harry standing on the stairs.

"Judging by your look of stunned disbelief, Harry did _not_ warn you that I was coming," Dumbledore guessed. "However, let us assume that you have invited us warmly into your house. It is unwise to linger overlong on doorsteps in these troubled times. Liza, if you will." He ushered Liza into the house in front of him then shut the door behind them.

Liza looked around the entry way. She had only been to this house once, four summers ago, and she had never left Mr. Weasley's flying car. The decorations in the house were extremely tacky, Liza observed.

"It is a long time since my last visit," Dumbledore said. "I must say, your agapanthus are flourishing." Then he turned to Harry and said, "Ah, good evening Harry. Excellent, excellent."

"I don't mean to be rude—" Mr. Dursley started, looking furious.

"—yet, sadly, accidental rudeness occurs alarmingly often," Dumbledore cut him off. "Best to say nothing at all, my dear man. Ah, and this must be Petunia." The door ahead of them had opened, revealing Harry's aunt. Her mouth opened in shock.

"Albus Dumbledore," Dumbledore introduced himself. "We have corresponded, of course. And this must be your son, Dudley?" Harry's cousin had also appeared in the doorway behind his mother, looking fearful. Nobody else said anything for a moment.

"Shall we assume that you have invited me into your sitting room?" Dumbledore suggested. Then he strode forward, Liza hurrying along in his wake only after flashing Harry a wide smile.

"Aren't—aren't we leaving, sir?" Harry asked, scrambling after Dumbledore and Liza. Dumbledore sat in one of the armchairs and looked around the room in interest.

"Yes, indeed we are, but there are a few matters we need to discuss first," Dumbledore answered him. "And I would prefer not to do so in the open. We shall trespass upon your aunt's and uncle's hospitality only a little longer."

"You will, will you?" Mr. Dursley had entered the room, seething, with his wife and child hiding behind him.

"Yes," Dumbledore said, "I shall." He pulled his wand out and flicked it. The couch flew behind the three Dursleys and scooped them up before returning to its original spot in the room.

"We may as well be comfortable," Dumbledore explained. "Liza, would you care to sit down?" He gestured to another armchair next to him, and Liza complied.

"Sir—what happened to your—?" Harry began, staring at Dumbledore's hand.

"Later, Harry," Dumbledore interrupted. "Please sit down." Harry dropped into the final armchair, looking determinedly away from his relatives.

"I would assume that you were going to offer us refreshment," Dumbledore continued, looking at Mr. Dursley, "but the evidence so far suggests that that would be optimistic to the point of foolishness." He waved his wand once more and a bottle appeared, along with six glasses. With another prod of Dumbledore's wand, the bottle poured its contents into the six glasses. Then the glasses soared across the room, one to each person.

"Madam Rosmerta's finest oak-matured mead," Dumbledore explained, holding up his own glass. Harry and Liza both picked up theirs and took a sip. Liza had never had mead before, but it was very good. Then she glanced across the room to where the Dursleys were sitting, ignoring their glasses, which were nudging them in their heads.

"Well, Harry," Dumbledore said, "a difficulty has arisen which I hope you will be able to solve for us. By us, I mean the Order of the Phoenix. But first of all I must tell you that Sirius's will was discovered a week ago and that he left you everything he owned."

"Oh," Harry said. "Right."

"This is, in the main, fairly straightforward," Dumbledore continued. "You add a reasonable amount of gold to your account at Gringotts, and you inherit all of Sirius's personal possessions. The slightly problematic part of the legacy—"

"His godfather's dead?" Mr. Dursley interrupted loudly. Liza, Harry, and Dumbledore looked around at him. He attempted to wave the glass of mead away from his head and asked, "He's dead? His godfather?"

"Yes," Dumbledore replied. "Our problem," he continued, turning back to Harry, "is that Sirius also left you number twelve, Grimmauld Place."

"He's been left a house?" Mr. Dursley asked.

"You can keep using it as headquarters," Harry said, ignoring his uncle. "I don't care. You can have it, I don't really want it."

"That is generous," Dumbledore said. "We have, however, vacated the building temporarily."

"Why?" Harry asked.

"Well, Black family tradition decreed that the house was handed down the direct line, to the next male with the name of 'Black'," Dumbledore explained. "Sirius was the very last of the line as his younger brother, Regulus, predeceased him and both were childless. While his will makes it perfectly plain that he wants you to have the house, it is nevertheless possible that some spell or enchantment has been set upon the place to ensure that it cannot be owned by anyone other than a pureblood."

"I bet there has," Harry said, frowning.

"Quite," Dumbledore agreed. "And if such an enchantment exists, then the ownership of the house is most likely to pass to the eldest of Sirius's living relatives, which would mean his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange." Harry jump to his feet, looking angry.

"No," he growled.

"Well, obviously we would prefer that she didn't get it, either," Dumbledore agreed. "The situation is fraught with complications. We do not know whether the enchantments we ourselves have placed upon it, for example, making it Unplottable, will hold now that ownership has passed from Sirius's hands. It might be that Bellatrix will arrive on the doorstep at any moment. Naturally we had to move out until such time as we have clarified the position."

"But how are you going to find out if I'm allowed to own it?" Harry asked.

"Fortunately," Dumbledore replied, "there is a simple test." He put his glass down.

" _Will you get these ruddy things off us_?" Mr. Dursley yelled suddenly from the couch. Liza looked over at them again.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Dumbledore said. He waved his wand and the glasses vanished. "But it would have been better manners to drink it, you know." Then he turned back to Harry. "You see, if you have indeed inherited the house, you have also inherited—" He once again flicked his wand, and there was a large crack. A house-elf had appeared in the middle of the sitting room, wailing loudly. Mrs. Dursley let out a scream.

"What the _hell_ is that?" Mr. Dursley roared.

"Kreacher," Dumbledore said simply.

"Kreacher won't, Kreacher won't, Kreacher won't!" the house-elf yelled, stomping his feet animatedly. "Kreacher belongs to Miss Bellatrix, oh yes, Kreacher belongs to the Black, Kreacher wants his new mistress, Kreacher won't go to the Potter brat, Kreacher won't, won't, wont—"

"As you can see, Harry," Dumbledore said, talking loudly over the excessive noise Kreacher was making, "Kreacher is showing a certain reluctance to pass into your ownership."

"I don't care," Harry sneered. "I don't want him."

" _Won't, won't, won't, won't_ —"

"You would prefer him to pass into the ownership of Bellatrix Lestrange?" Dumbledore asked carefully. "Bearing in mind that he has lived at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix for the past year?"

" _Won't, won't, won't, won't—_ "

"Give him an order," Dumbledore suggested. "If he has passed into your ownership, he will have to obey. If not, then we shall have to think of some other means of keeping him from his rightful mistress."

" _Won't, won't, won't, WON'T!_ "

"Kreacher, shut up!" Harry shouted. Kreacher became quiet immediately, although his mouth was still moving as though he was trying to speak. He put his hands to his throat for a moment before throwing himself onto the floor and beating his fists against the carpet.

"Well, that simplifies matters," Dumbledore said. "It seems that Sirius knew what he was doing. You are the rightful owner of number twelve, Grimmauld Place and of Kreacher."

"Do I—do I have to keep him with me?" Harry asked uncertainly.

"Not if you don't want to," Dumbledore answered. "If I might make a suggestion, you could send him to Hogwarts to work in the kitchen there. In that way, the other house-elves could keep an eye on him."

"Yeah," Harry agreed immediately, "yeah, I'll do that. Er—Kreacher—I want you to go to Hogwarts and work in the kitchens there with the other house-elves." Kreacher glared at Harry from his spot on the floor before disappearing on the spot.

"Good," Dumbledore said, nodding. "There is also the matter of the hippogriff, Buckbeak. Hagrid has been looking after him since Sirius died, but Buckbeak is yours now, so if you would prefer to make different arrangements—"

"No," Harry said, shaking his head, "he can stay with Hagrid. I think Buckbeak would prefer that."

"Hagrid will be delighted," Dumbledore said, beaming. "He was thrilled to see Buckbeak again. Incidentally, we have decided, in the interest of Buckbeak's safety, to rechristen him 'Witherwings' for the time being, though I doubt that the Ministry would ever guess he is the hippogriff they once sentence to death. Now, Harry, is your trunk packed?"

"Erm…" Harry mumbled.

"Doubtful that I would turn up?" Dumbledore asked slyly.

"I'll just go and—er—finish off," Harry said, hurrying from the room.

"Ah," Dumbledore said, settling back in his chair. "Well, while Harry's busy packing, I suppose we should introduce you, Liza." Liza nodded, turning her attention to the Dursleys. "This might be difficult to hear," Dumbledore continued to the Dursleys, "but I would like you to meet Elizabeth Jones. She was born as Elizabeth Lily Potter on July thirty-first, nineteen-eighty to parents James and Lily Potter." There was a stunned silence.

"Wh-what?" Mrs. Dursley asked.

"Liza is Harry's twin sister," Dumbledore answered simply. "She is your niece." Another beat of silence.

"Are you trying to dump another freak on us?" Mr. Dursley demanded. "It was bad enough having to take care of the boy for the last fifteen years." Liza's eyes widened in surprise. She always knew that Mr. Dursley was not accepting of the Wizarding world, but she was still shocked at the ferocity in which he spoke.

Dumbledore surveyed the man over the top of his half-moon glasses and said, "You will be delighted to hear, then, that you do not need to take Liza in. She has her own adoptive parents."

There was silence for a while. Mr. Dursley was muttering darkly to himself, looking away from Dumbledore and Liza. Mrs. Dursley, on the other hand, was staring at Liza with a mixture of shock and curiosity on her face.

Finally, Harry reappeared in the room. "Professor—I'm ready now," he announced.

"Good," Dumbledore replied. "Just one last thing, then." He turned to the Dursleys and continued, "As you will no doubt be aware, Harry comes of age in a year's time—"

"No," Mrs. Dursley interrupted.

"I'm sorry?" Dumbledore asked.

"No, he doesn't," Mrs. Dursley repeated. "He's a month younger than Dudley, and Dudders doesn't turn eighteen until the year after next."

"Ah, but in the Wizarding world we come of age at seventeen," Dumbledore explained simply. Mr. Dursley said something under his breath, but Dumbledore ignored him. "Now, as you already know, the wizard called Lord Voldemort has returned to this country. The Wizarding community is currently in a state of open warfare. Harry, whom Lord Voldemort has already attempted to kill on a number of occasions, is in even greater danger now than the day when I left him upon your doorstep fifteen years ago, with a letter explaining about his parents' murder and expressing the hope that you would care for him as though he were your own."

There was a pause. Liza looked at Dumbledore, whose face expressed his disappointment in the Dursleys even though his voice remained relatively calm.

"You did not do as I asked," he said gravely. "You have never treated Harry as a son. He has known nothing but neglect and often cruelty at your hands. The best that can be said is that he has at least escaped the appalling damage you have inflicted upon the unfortunate boy sitting between you."

Mr. and Mrs. Dursley looked at their son, their shock very obvious.

"Us—mistreat Dudders?" Mr. Dursley asked angrily. "What d'you—?" Dumbledore rose his hand, halting Mr. Dursley in his tracks.

"The magic I evoked fifteen years ago means that Harry has powerful protection while he can still call this house 'home'," Dumbledore continued. "However miserable he has been here, however unwelcome, however badly treated, you have at least, grudgingly, allowed him houseroom. This magic will cease to operate the moment that Harry turns seventeen; in other words, at the moment he becomes a man. I ask only this: that you allow Harry to return, once more, to this house, before his seventeenth birthday, which will ensure that this protection continues until that time."

The Dursleys were all silent. Dumbledore waited for a few moments longer.

"Well, Harry, Liza…time for us to be off," Dumbledore said, getting to his feet. "Until we meet again," he added to the Dursleys. He lifted his hat in farewell and exited the room. Liza nodded to her Muggle relatives before following Dumbledore, who was stopped in the entry way.

"We do not want to be encumbered by these just now," he said, motioning to Harry's trunk and Harry's owl Hedwig's cage. "I shall send them to the Burrow to await us there. However, I would like you to bring your Invisibility Cloak…just in case."

Harry opened his trunk, rummaged around for a moment, and pulled the cloak out. He put it into his jacket pocket. Dumbledore waved his wand, and the trunk and Hedwig disappeared. Then he waved his wand once more and the front door opened.

"And now, let us step out into the night and pursue that flight temptress, adventure," Dumbledore announced.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	2. Chapter 2 The Former Professor

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 2 – The Former Professor**

Dumbledore led Harry and Liza down the street.

"Keep your wands at the ready, please," he told them as they walked. Harry and Liza exchanged confused glances.

"But I thought we're not allowed to use magic outside school, sir?" Harry asked.

"If there is an attack," Dumbledore began, "I give you both permission to use any counterjinx or curse that might occur to you. However, I do not think you need worry about being attacked tonight."

"Why not?" Liza asked curiously.

"You are with me," Dumbledore answered. He came to a stop at the end of the road and said, "This will do." He turned to look at the Potter twins. "You have not, of course, passed your Apparition Test, Harry."

"No," Harry confirmed. "I thought you had to be seventeen?"

"You do," Dumbledore said. "So you will need to hold on to my arm very tightly. My left, if you don't mind—as you have noticed, my wand arm is a little fragile at the moment." He held his arm out, and Harry and Liza both took it. "Very good," Dumbledore said approvingly. "Well, here we go."

Dumbledore rotated on the spot again. Liza was ready for it this time, although the feeling wasn't much better than the first time. It only lasted a few seconds, and then they found themselves in a deserted village square. There was some kind of memorial in the center of the square, and there were a few benches around, as well. Liza took a few deep breaths, trying to fill her lungs again.

"Are you all right?" Dumbledore asked, looking at Harry, who was rubbing his ears. "The sensation does take some getting used to."

"I'm fine," Harry replied. "But I think I might prefer brooms." Dumbledore smiled.

"This way," he said. Then he turned and set off down the street. They past an inn, some houses, and a church with a clock on it which read that the time was nearly midnight.

"So tell me, Harry," Dumbledore said conversationally. "Your scar…has it been hurting at all?" Liza saw Harry reach up and rub at the lightning-shaped scar on his forehead.

"No," he answered, "and I've been wondering about that. I thought it would be burning all the time now Voldemort's getting so powerful again."

"I, on the other hand, thought otherwise," Dumbledore said, sounding satisfied. "Lord Voldemort has finally realized the dangerous access to his thoughts and feelings you have been enjoying. It appears that he is now employing Occlumency against you."

"Well, I'm not complaining," Harry mumbled.

They continued on, turning a corner and walking down a side street.

"Professor?" Liza asked after a few more minutes.

"Liza?" Dumbledore prompted.

"Er—where are we exactly?" Liza questioned.

"This is the charming village of Budleigh Babberton," Dumbledore answered.

"And what are we doing here?" Harry asked.

"Ah yes, of course, I haven't told you," Dumbledore said. "Well, I have lost count of the number of times I have said this in recent years, but we are, once again, one member of staff short. We are here to persuade an old colleague of mine to come out of retirement and return to Hogwarts."

"How can we help with that?" Liza wondered.

"Oh, I think we'll find a use for you two," Dumbledore replied loftily. "Left here."

They were on another side street lined with houses. There were no lights on in any of the houses. Liza held tightly to her wand in her pocket.

"Professor, why couldn't we just Apparate directly into your old colleague's house?" Harry asked.

"Because it would be quite as rude as kicking down the front door," Dumbledore answered. "Courtesy dictates that we offer fellow wizards the opportunity of denying us entry. In any case, most Wizarding dwellings are magically protected from unwanted Apparators. At Hogwarts, for instance—"

"—you can't Apparate anywhere inside the buildings or grounds," Harry finished. "Hermione Granger told me."

"And she is quite right," Dumbledore said, nodding. "We turn left again."

Behind them, the church clock rang, signaling that it was now midnight.

"Sir, I saw in the _Daily Prophet_ that Fudge has been sacked..." Harry said.

"Correct," Dumbledore said. "He has been replaced, as I am sure you also saw, by Rufus Scrimgeour, who used to be Head of the Auror office."

"Is he… Do you think he's good?" Harry asked.

"An interested question," Dumbledore said. "He is able, certainly. A more decisive and forceful personality than Cornelius."

"Yes, but I meant—" Harry began.

"I know what you meant," Dumbledore interrupted. "Rufus is a man of action and, having fought Dark wizards for most of his working life, does not underestimate Lord Voldemort."

"That's good," Liza added quietly.

"And…sir…I saw about Madam Bones," Harry said.

"Yes," Dumbledore sighed heavily. "A terrible loss. She was a great witch. Just up here, I think—ouch." He had pointed to a house with his injured hand.

"Professor, what happened to your—?" Harry started to ask.

"I have no time to explain it now," Dumbledore cut him off. "It is a thrilling tale, I wish to do it justice." But he smiled at both Harry and Liza, letting them know that he was not angry.

"Sir—I got a Ministry of Magic leaflet by owl, about security measures we should all take against the Death Eaters…" Harry said.

"I got one, too," Liza said.

"Yes, I received one myself," Dumbledore said. "Did you find it useful?"

"No," Liza said as Harry said, "Not really."

"No, I thought not," Dumbledore said. "You have not asked me, for instance, what is my favorite flavor of jam, to check that I am indeed Professor Dumbledore and not an imposter." Harry and Liza looked at each other with wide eyes.

"I didn't…" Harry trailed off.

"For future reference, it is raspberry…although of course, if I were a Death Eater, I would have been sure to research my own jam preferences before impersonating myself," Dumbledore said thoughtfully.

"Er…right," Harry said. "Well, on that leaflet, it said something about Inferi. What exactly are they? The leaflet wasn't very clear."

"They are corpses," Dumbledore answered. "Dead bodies that have been bewitched to do a Dark wizard's bidding. Inferi have not been seen for a long time, however, not since Voldemort was last powerful… He killed enough people to make an army of them, of course."

"That's disturbing," Liza muttered.

"Ah, this is the place, just here…" Dumbledore said, gesturing to a house they were coming up to. It was a small, stone house with a small garden out front. They walked up to the front gate, and Dumbledore halted.

"Oh dear," he said. "Oh dear, dear, dear." Liza looked up at the house and noticed that the front door had been taken off its hinges.

"What does that mean, Professor?" Liza asked quietly. Dumbledore looked up and down the street, but there didn't seem to be anyone around.

"Wands out and follow me," Dumbledore instructed. Harry and Liza took their wands out of their pockets. Dumbledore opened the gate and strode up the walk. Harry and Liza followed him closely as he pushed the front door out of the way, his wand held high.

" _Lumos_ ," he muttered, and the end of his wand lit up. Then Dumbledore walked into the house, his wand illuminating the room. Liza and Harry entered behind him.

The entire sitting room had been trashed. There was a grandfather clock smashed on the floor, and the piano was lying on its side. The remainders of a crystal chandelier was also lying nearby, glistening in Dumbledore's wand light. Feathers from cushions and bits of glass and china littered the floor. Dumbledore held his wand even higher, and the light shined off the walls. There was a red liquid dripping from one of the walls. Liza put one of her hands over her mouth, and she heard Harry gasp quietly.

"Not pretty, is it?" Dumbledore asked. "Yes, something horrible has happened here." He took a few steps forward, stopping in the middle of the room. Harry and Liza carefully walked over to him.

"Maybe there was a fight and—and they dragged him off, Professor?" Harry guessed.

"I don't think so," Dumbledore disagreed politely. He was gazing around at the wreckage around him.

"You mean he's—?" Liza started.

"Still here somewhere?" Dumbledore finished. "Yes."

Then, suddenly, he swooped down on the armchair nearby, which was lying on its side but looked relatively unharmed. Dumbledore poked the chair with the end of his wand, and the armchair shouted "Ouch!"

"What was that?" Liza yelped.

"Good evening, Horace," Dumbledore said to the chair, standing up straight once again. The chair vanished at once, and in its place was crouched an old, fat, bald man. He looked up at Dumbledore, rubbing his stomach where Dumbledore had poked him with the wand.

"There was no need to stick the wand in that hard," the man grumbled. He slowly got to his feet. "It hurt. What gave it away?"

"My dear Horace," Dumbledore began, amusement in his voice, "if the Death Eaters really had come to call, the Dark Mark would have been set over the house." The man smacked himself in the head with his palm.

"The Dark Mark," he said. "Knew there was something…ah well. Wouldn't have had time anyway, I'd only just put the finishing touches to my upholstery when you entered the room." He sighed.

"Would you like my assistance clearing up?" Dumbledore asked.

"Please," the man replied. He and Dumbledore turned so they were back to back, and then they both waved their wands together.

Before Harry's and Liza's eyes, the room began to clean itself up. The furniture was repaired and replaced in their spots. The decorative pieces were fixed, soaring into place. The piano was righted, and the chandelier flew back to hanging from the ceiling. The red liquid on the walls was wiped away, and lanterns relit themselves.

"What kind of blood was that, incidentally?" Dumbledore asked over the noise of the grandfather clock being put back together.

"On the walls? Dragon," the other man answered. A few moments later, the room was back to pristine condition.

"Yes, dragon," the man continued. "My last bottle, and prices are sky-high at the moment. Still, it might be reusable." He went over to where a crystal bottle was sitting on a shelf, picked it up, and examined the contents. "Hmm. Bit dusty."

The man finally looked around to see who Dumbledore had brought with him and said, "Oho. _Oho_!" His eyes flicked up to Harry's forehead.

"These are Harry Potter and Liza Jones," Dumbledore introduced them. "Harry, Liza, this is an old friend and colleague of mine, Horace Slughorn."

Slughorn turned back to Dumbledore and sighed, "So that's how you thought you'd persuade me, is it? Well, the answer's no, Albus." He strode away from them.

"I suppose we can have a drink, at least?" Dumbledore asked. "For old time's sake?" Slughorn paused and then turned around again.

"All right then, one drink," he agreed grudgingly.

Dumbledore ushered Harry and Liza into chairs in front of the fireplace, which now bore a bright, warm fire. Harry and Liza sat, glancing at each other, neither of them quite understanding what was going on. Slughorn, after preparing the drinks, turned around and his eyes immediately went to the twins.

"Hmpf," he grunted, averting his gaze once again. "Here—" He pushed Dumbledore's drink into his hand and handed the rest of the tray to Harry and Liza. Then he sat down, still refusing to look at Harry or Liza.

"Well, how have you been keeping, Horace?" Dumbledore asked.

"Not so well," Slughorn answered. "Weak chest. Wheezy. Rheumatism too. Can't move like I used to. Well, that's to be expected. Old age. Fatigue."

"And yet you must have moved fairly quickly to prepare such a welcome for us at such short notice," Dumbledore commented. "You can't have had more than three minutes' warning?"

"Two," Slughorn replied, sounding almost proud. "Didn't hear my Intruder Charm go off, I was taking a bath. Still, the fact remains that I'm an old man, Albus. A tired old man who's earned the right to a quiet life and a few creature comforts."

"You're not yet as old as I am, Horace," Dumbledore pointed out.

"Well, maybe you ought to think about retirement yourself," Slughorn suggested. He glanced at Dumbledore's frail hand. "Reactions not what they were, I see."

"You're quite right," Dumbledore said, revealing the hand to his old friend. "I am undoubtedly slower than I was. But on the other hand…" He spread his arms out wide. Liza was drawn to a ring that Dumbledore was wearing on his uninjured hand. She had never seen him wear it before, as far as she could remember.

"So, all these precautions against intruders, Horace…are they for the Death Eaters' benefit, or mine?" Dumbledore continued.

"What would the Death Eaters want with a poor broken-down old buffer like me?" Slughorn scowled.

"I imagine that they would want you to turn your considerable talents to coercion, torture, and murder," Dumbledore replied. "Are you really telling me that they haven't come recruiting yet?"

"I haven't given them the chance," Slughorn said. "I've been on the move for a year. Never stay in one place more than a week. Move from Muggle house to Muggle house—the owners of this place are on holiday in the Canary Islands—it's been very pleasant, I'll be sorry to leave. It's quite easy once you know how, one simple Freezing Charm on these absurd burglar alarms they use instead of Sneakoscopes and make sure the neighbors don't spot you bringing in the piano."

"Ingenious," Dumbledore said. "But it sounds a rather tiring existence for a broken-down old buffer in search of a quiet life. Now, if you were to return to Hogwarts—"

"If you're going to tell me my life would be more peaceful at that pestilential school, you can save your breath, Albus!" Slughorn cut in. "I might have been in hiding, but some funny rumors have reached me since Dolores Umbridge left! If that's how you treat teachers these days—"

"Professor Umbridge ran afoul of our centaur herd," Dumbledore explained calmly. "I think you, Horace, would have known better than to stride into the forest and call a horde of angry centaurs 'filthy halfbreeds.'" Liza tried very hard not to laugh at the image of their former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher running away from Hogwarts while Peeves the Poltergeist chased her down the front drive.

"That's what she did, did she?" Slughorn said. "Idiotic woman. Never liked her." Harry let out a laugh at this, and Dumbledore and Slughorn turned to him.

"Sorry," he said. "It's just—I didn't like her either."

Then suddenly Dumbledore stood up.

"Are you leaving?" Slughorn asked hopefully.

"No, I was wondering whether I might use your bathroom," Dumbledore replied.

"Oh," Slughorn sighed. "Second on the left down the hall." Dumbledore left the room, leaving Slughorn with Harry and Liza. There was silence for a minute.

"Don't think I don't know why he's brought you two," Slughorn said. Harry and Liza just looked at the man, who was surveying Harry thoughtfully. "You look very like your father," he commented.

"Yeah, I've been told," Harry said bluntly.

"Except for your eyes. You've got—"

"My mother's eyes, yeah," Harry finished for him. Slughorn turned to Liza.

"You have your mother's eyes, as well," he commented. Liza just nodded, not sure what else to say to him. "Yes, well. You shouldn't have favorites as a teacher, of course, but she was one of mine. Your mother. Lily Evans. One of the brightest I ever taught. Vivacious, you know. Charming girl. I used to tell her she ought to have been in my House. Very cheeky answers I used to get back too."

"Which was your House?" Harry asked.

"I was Head of Slytherin," Slughorn answered. Harry must have given him a withering look, because Slughorn then wagged his finger at Harry and said, "Oh, now, don't go holding that against me! You'll be Gryffindor like her, I suppose? Yes, it usually goes in families. Not always, though. Ever heard of Sirius Black? You must have done—been in the papers for the last couple of years—died a few weeks ago—"

Liza's heart constricted momentarily. To hear someone talk about Sirius in such an off-handed way almost brought tears to her eyes.

"Well, anyway, he was a big pal of your father's at school," Slughorn continued. "The whole Black family had been in my House, but Sirius ended up in Gryffindor! Shame—he was a talented boy. I got his brother, Regulus, when he came along, but I'd have liked the set."

 _The set?_ Liza thought curiously. It made the man sound as though he had collected students while he had been teaching at Hogwarts.

"Your mother was Muggleborn, of course," Slughorn went on. "Couldn't believe it when I found out. Thought she must have been pure-blood, she was so good."

"One of our best friends is Muggleborn," Harry interjected, "and she's the best in our year."

"Funny how that sometimes happens, isn't it?" Slughorn asked.

"Not really," Liza said, frowning.

"You mustn't think I'm prejudiced!" Slughorn said quickly. "No, no, no! Haven't I just said your mother was one of my all-time favorite students? And there was Dirk Cresswell in the year after her too—now Head of the Goblin Liaison Office, of course—another Muggleborn, a very gifted student, and still gives me excellent inside information on the goings-on at Gringotts!"

He turned his attention to a dresser, on top of which were piled many picture frames.

"All ex-students, all signed," he said proudly, pointing to the photos. "You'll notice Barnabas Cuffe, editor of the _Daily Prophet_ , he's always interested to hear my take on the day's news. And Ambrosius Flume, of Honeydukes—a hamper every birthday, and all because I was able to give him an introduction to Ciceron Harkiss, who gave him his first job! And at the back—you'll see her if you just crane your neck—that's Gwenog Jones, who of course captains the Holyhead Harpies… People are always astonished to hear I'm on first-name terms with the Harpies, and free tickets whenever I want them!"

"And all these people know where to find you, to send you stuff?" Harry asked. Slughorn's smile fell from his face immediately.

"Of course not," he said. "I have been out of touch with everybody for a year." He paused, looking almost surprised by this information, and then he shrugged. "Still…the prudent wizard keeps his head down in such times. All very well for Dumbledore to talk, but taking up a post at Hogwarts just now would be tantamount to declaring my public allegiance to the Order of the Phoenix! And while I'm sure they're very admirable and brave and all the rest of it, I don't personally fancy the mortality rate—"

"You don't have to join the Order to teach at Hogwarts," Liza said. "Most of the teachers aren't in it."

"And none of them has ever been killed," Harry added. "Well, unless you count Quirrell, and he got what he deserved seeing as he was working with Voldemort." Slughorn jumped at the use of Voldemort's name. "I reckon the staff are safer than most people while Dumbledore's headmaster," Harry continued. "He's supposed to be the only one Voldemort ever feared, isn't he?" Slughorn looked at Harry carefully.

"Well, yes, it is true that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has never sought a fight with Dumbledore," he agreed slowly. "And I suppose one could argue that as I have not joined the Death Eaters, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named can hardly count me a friend…in which case, I might well be safer a little closer to Albus… I cannot pretend that Amelia Bones's death did not shake me… If she, with all her Ministry contacts and protection…"

Dumbledore finally came back into the room at that point, and Slughorn gave a start.

"Oh, there you are, Albus," he said. "You've been a very long time. Upset stomach?"

"No, I was merely reading the Muggle magazines," Dumbledore answered. "I do love knitting patterns. Well, Harry, Liza, we have trespassed upon Horace's hospitality quite long enough; I think it is time for us to leave." Harry and Liza stood immediately and crossed the room to join Dumbledore.

"You're leaving?" Slughorn asked.

"Yes, indeed," Dumbledore answered. "I think I know a lost cause when I see one."

"Lost…?" Slughorn repeated.

"Well, I'm sorry you don't want the job, Horace," Dumbledore said. He raised his good hand in farewell. "Hogwarts would have been glad to see you back again. Our greatly increased security notwithstanding, you will always be welcome to visit, should you wish to."

"Yes…well…" Slughorn stammered, "very gracious…as I say…"

"Good-bye, then," Dumbledore finished.

"Bye," Harry and Liza echoed. They turned and followed Dumbledore to the front door. There was a sudden shout from behind them that made them pause.

"All right, all right, I'll do it!" Slughorn cried. Dumbledore turned to face his old colleague.

"You will come out of retirement?" he asked.

"Yes, yes," Slughorn said. "I must be mad, but yes."

"Wonderful," Dumbledore said, smiling. "Then, Horace, we shall see you on the first of September."

"Yes, I daresay you will," Slughorn answered. Dumbledore turned once again and led the other two out of the house. They were halfway to the road when Slughorn yelled from behind them, "I'll want a pay rise, Dumbledore!"

Dumbledore merely laughed. He pushed open the garden gate, and then he led the way back down the street.

"Well done," Dumbledore said to the two Potters.

"I didn't do anything," Harry replied.

"Nor I," Liza agreed.

"Oh yes you did," Dumbledore insisted. "You showed Horace exactly how much he stands to gain by returning to Hogwarts. Did you like him?"

"Er…" Harry said. He looked at Liza, who shrugged back at him. He definitely seemed to be an interesting man, but Liza wasn't sure how she felt about him.

"Horace likes his comfort," Dumbledore explained. "He also likes the company of the famous, the successful, and the powerful. He enjoys the feeling that he influences these people. He has never wanted to occupy the throne himself; he prefers the backseat—more room to spread out, you see. He used to handpick favorites at Hogwarts, sometimes for their ambition or their brains, sometimes for their charm or their talent, and he had an uncanny knack for choosing those who would go on to become outstanding in their various fields. Horace formed a kind of club of his favorites with himself at the center, making introductions, forging useful contacts between members, and always reaping some kind of benefit in return, whether a free box of his favorite crystallized pineapple or the chance to recommend the next junior member of the Goblin Liaison Office.

"I tell you all this," Dumbledore went on, "not to turn you against Horace—or, as we must now call him, Professor Slughorn—but to put you on your guard. He will undoubtedly try to collect you both. You would be the jewels of his collection: 'the Boy Who Lived'—or, as they call you these days, 'the Chosen One'—and his long-lost twin sister."

Liza nodded her understanding. She had become suspicious of this as Dumbledore had been telling them about Slughorn.

"This will do," Dumbledore said, coming to a stop a little ways down the road. "If you will grasp my arm." Harry and Liza did as they were told, and Dumbledore Apparated once again.

They appeared just outside the gate to the Burrow. Liza looked over at Harry, who was smiling up at the building. She grinned as well.

"If you don't mind, Harry," Dumbledore said after they passed through the gate, "I'd like a few words with you before we part. In private. Perhaps in here?" He pointed to the shed where the Weasleys kept their brooms. "Liza, if you wouldn't mind waiting for us?"

"Not at all," Liza replied. She walked down the path towards the entrance to the Burrow and plopped down onto an old stool that was standing just outside the door. She tilted her head back and looked at the stars, her mind drifting slightly.

As what often happened when she was left alone these days, her thoughts wandered directly to John McDevlyn, her boyfriend—well, ex-boyfriend. John was in the same year as Liza, but he had been Sorted into Slytherin. He and Liza had started a very easy friendship when they were in their first year, and in the fourth year they started dating.

However, John's father was a former Death Eater, and when Voldemort returned to power, Mr. McDevlyn fell back on his Death Eater ways. John didn't believe in Voldemort's cause, but since he was underage and to protect his family, he couldn't speak out against his father.

Then, in June, when Liza's secret was finally revealed to the public, Liza knew she had to break up with him, for his own safety. There was no doubt in her mind that John's parents wouldn't like the fact that he was dating Harry Potter's twin sister, not to mention what Voldemort would do if he found out.

She hadn't wanted to break up with him, but once her mind was set, she had to follow through. Now, though, she couldn't help but miss him and wonder if he ever thought about her.

Liza sighed, holding up her right arm and touching the charms that dangled from a bracelet there. It had been a Christmas gift from John from years ago, and she still wore it every day. She only hoped that he would be able to forgive her someday; and she hoped that she would be able to forgive herself.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: I figured Slughorn would be pretty interested in collecting Liza as well, just because she is Harry's twin and her story is still pretty big news in the Wizarding world, so that's why she went to Slughorn's with Dumbledore and Harry.**_


	3. Chapter 3 OWL Results

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 3 – O.W.L. Results**

Soon, Dumbledore and Harry stepped out of the broom shed and made their way towards Liza. She stood up as they joined her. Dumbledore raised his good hand and knocked three times on the door.

"Who's there?" a voice from inside the house asked. "Declare yourself!"

"It is I, Dumbledore, bringing Harry and Liza," Dumbledore replied. The door swung open immediately, revealing Mrs. Weasley in her dressing gown.

"Harry, dear!" she gasped, pulling the boy into a tight hug. "Gracious, Albus, you gave me a fright, you said not to expect you before morning! Hello, Liza," she added, smiling warmly at Liza.

"We were lucky," Dumbledore replied, gesturing for Harry and Liza to enter the kitchen. "Slughorn proved much more persuadable than I had expected. Harry's and Liza's doing, of course. Ah, hello, Nymphadora!" Liza and Harry looked around the room, surprised to see Nymphadora Tonks, a young Auror and member of the Order of the Phoenix, sitting at the table.

"Hello, Professor," she greeted. "Wotcher, Harry, Liza."

"Hi, Tonks," Liza said cheerfully, although the witch before her looked anything but.

"I'd better be off," Tonks said, standing up quickly. "Thanks for the tea and sympathy, Molly."

"Please don't leave on my account," Dumbledore said, "I cannot stay, I have urgent matters to discuss with Rufus Scrimgeour."

"No, no, I need to get going," Tonks assured him. "'Night—"

"Dear, why not come to dinner at the weekend, Remus and Mad-Eye are coming—?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"No, really, Molly," Tonks said. "Thanks anyway… Good night, everyone." She gave a brief smile to everyone in the room before hurrying out the door. Liza watched as she took a few steps into the yard, spun on the spot, and Apparated away.

"Well, I shall see you at Hogwarts, Harry, Liza," Dumbledore said. "Take care of yourselves. Molly, your servant." He bowed to Mrs. Weasley, then turned and strode into the yard. He vanished as well. Mrs. Weasley closed the door, took Harry by the shoulders, and led him into the light of lantern so she could look at him properly.

"You're like Ron," she commented. "Both of you look as though you've had Stretching Jinxes put on you. I swear Ron's grown four inches since I last bought him school robes. Are you hungry, Harry?"

"Yeah, I am," Harry replied.

"And you, Liza?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"I suppose I am a little bit," Liza answered.

"Sit down, I'll knock something up," Mrs. Weasley said, gesturing to the table. Harry and Liza took their seats, and Crookshanks, Hermione's ginger cat, hopped up onto Harry's lap.

"So Hermione's here?" Harry asked.

"Oh yes, she arrived last weekend," Mrs. Weasley replied. She waved her wand, directing a large pot onto the stove. "Everyone's in bed, of course, we didn't expect you for hours. Here you are—" She tapped the pot with her wand, and it flew over to the table. It tipped over, filling up two bowls with onion soup.

"Bread, dears?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley," Harry answered. Mrs. Weasley flicked her wand, and a loaf of bread soared over to the table. A knife cut a few slices off the bread, and the slices landed on a plate between Harry and Liza. Mrs. Weasley took a seat on the other side of the table.

"So you two persuaded Horace Slughorn to take the job?" Mrs. Weasley prompted. Harry nodded, his mouth full.

"Well, Dumbledore says we did," Liza said.

"He taught Arthur and me," Mrs. Weasley explained. "He was at Hogwarts for ages, started around the same time as Dumbledore, I think. Did you like him?" Harry shrugged, mouth still full of food.

"He's…interesting," Liza supplied. Mrs. Weasley nodded.

"I know what you mean," she said. "Of course he can be charming when he wants to be, but Arthur's never liked him much. The Ministry's littered with Slughorn's old favorites, he was always good at giving leg ups, but he never had much time for Arthur—didn't seem to think he was enough of a highflier. Well, that just shows you, even Slughorn makes mistakes. I don't know whether Ron's told you in any of his letters—it's only just happened—but Arthur's been promoted!" Liza smiled, having heard the news earlier in the week when it had happened.

"That's great!" Harry said.

"You are sweet," Mrs. Weasley said. "Yes, Rufus Scrimgeour has set up several new offices in response to the present situation, and Arthur's heading the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects. It's a big job, he's got ten people reporting to him now!"

"What exactly—?" Harry asked.

"Well, you see, in all the panic about You-Know-Who," Mrs. Weasley began, "odd things have been cropping up for sale everywhere, things that are supposed to guard against You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters. You can imagine the kind of thing—so-called protective potions that are really gravy with a bit of bubotuber pus added, or instructions for defensive jinxes that actually make your ears fall off… Well, in the main the perpetrators are just people like Mundungus Fletcher, who've never done an honest day's work in their lives and are taking advantage of how frightened everybody is, but every now and then something really nasty turns up. The other day Arthur confiscated a box of cursed Sneakoscopes that were almost certainly planted by a Death Eater. So you see, it's a very important job, and I tell him it's just silly to miss dealing with spark plugs and toasters and all the rest of that Muggle rubbish."

"Is Mr. Weasley still at work?" Liza asked.

"Yes, he is," Mrs. Weasley answered. "As a matter of fact, he's a tiny bit late… He said he'd be back around midnight…" She looked over at her old family clock, which was sitting on top of a pile of sheets in one of her laundry baskets. This clock had nine hands, each with a name of a family member written on it, and all of them were currently pointing to "mortal peril".

"It's been like that for a while now," Mrs. Weasley sighed, "ever since You-Know-Who came back into the open. I suppose everybody's in mortal danger now… I don't think it can be just our family…but I don't know anyone else who's got a clock like this, so I can't check. Oh!"

The hand with Mr. Weasley's name on it had suddenly spun over to "traveling."

"He's coming!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed. A few seconds later, there was a knock on the door, and Mrs. Weasley ran to it but didn't open it right away.

"Arthur, is that you?" she asked, one hand on the doorknob.

"Yes," Mr. Weasley replied. "But I would say that even if I were a Death Eater, dear. Ask the question!"

"Oh, honestly…" Mrs. Weasley mumbled.

"Molly!" Mr. Weasley insisted.

"All right, all right… What is your dearest ambition?"

"To find out how airplanes stay up," Mr. Weasley answered. Mrs. Weasley turned the doorknob, but the door wouldn't budge. Evidently, Mr. Weasley was holding it shut from the other side.

"Molly! I've got to ask you your question first!" he said.

"Arthur, really, this is just silly…"

"What do you like me to call you when we're alone together?" Mr. Weasley asked. Liza and Harry looked away as Mrs. Weasley turned red in embarrassment. Harry went back to eating his soup as loudly as possible.

"Mollywobbles," Mrs. Weasley replied in a quiet voice, yet Harry and Liza still heard.

"Correct," Mr. Weasley said. "Now you can let me in." Mrs. Weasley pulled the door open, and her husband stepped into the house.

"I still don't see why we have to go through that every time you come home," Mrs. Weasley grumbled, still looking embarrassed. "I mean, a Death Eater might have forced the answer out of you before impersonating you!"

"I know, dear, but it's Ministry procedure, and I have to set an example," Mr. Weasley said. "Something smells good—onion soup?" He turned to the table and saw Harry and Liza sitting there.

"Harry!" he exclaimed. "Liza! We didn't expect you until morning!" He shook Harry's hand and gave Liza a brief wave. Then he sat down, and Mrs. Weasley handed him a bowl of soup, as well.

"Thanks, Molly," he said gratefully. "It's been a tough night. Some idiot's started selling Metamorph-Medals. Just sling them around your neck and you'll be able to change your appearance at will. A hundred thousand disguises, all for ten Galleons!"

"And what really happens when you put them on?" Mrs. Weasley prompted.

"Mostly you just turn a fairly unpleasant orange color," Mr. Weasley answered, "but a couple of people have also sprouted tentaclelike warts all over their bodies. As if St. Mungo's didn't have enough to do already!"

"It sounds like the sort of thing Fred and George would find funny," Mrs. Weasley said cautiously. "Are you sure—?"

"Of course I am!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed. "The boys wouldn't do anything like that now, not when people are desperate for protection!"

Fred and George Weasley were twins, and they had been two years ahead of Liza at Hogwarts. They would have graduated the previous year, but instead they had decided to leave early to pursue their dream of owning their own joke shop. Apparently it had been going very well so far.

"So is that why you're late, Metamorph-Medals?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"No, we got wind of a nasty backfiring jinx down in Elephant and Castle," Mr. Weasley reported, "but luckily the Magical Law Enforcement Squad had sorted it out by the time we got there…" Next to Liza, Harry yawned into his hand.

"Bed," Mrs. Weasley said. "I've got Fred's and George's room all ready for you, Harry, you'll have it to yourself after tonight. Liza, you're only spending the one night, so I'm going to have you share with your brother so you don't wake Hermione or Ginny."

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley," Liza said.

"Where are Fred and George?" Harry asked, sounding confused.

"Oh, they're in Diagon Alley, sleeping in the little flat over their joke shop as they're so busy," Mrs. Weasley replied. "I must say, I didn't approve at first, but they do seem to have a bit of a flair for business! Come on, your trunk's already up there."

"'Night, Mr. Weasley," Harry said.

"Good night, Mr. Weasley!" Liza added.

"G'night, Harry, Liza," Mr. Weasley said, returning to his onion soup.

Mrs. Weasley led the way up to the Weasley twins' old bedroom, which was on the floor right above Ginny's. When Mrs. Weasley opened the door, she pointed her wand at the lamp, and it flickered to life. Harry's trunk and Hedwig's cage were sitting on the floor at the end of one of the beds. Liza's bag was sitting on the other.

Hedwig, who had been sitting on top of a wardrobe in the corner, hooted at Harry before taking off out the window. Mrs. Weasley said good night and left the room, leaving Liza and Harry to get into bed.

"So _this_ is what it's like sharing a room with a sibling," Liza joked as she pulled the blanket up to her neck. Harry smirked at her.

"Good night, Liza," he said.

"'Night!" Liza replied. She rolled over and fell asleep immediately.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Liza awoke with a squeak as the bedroom door banged open.

"Wuzzgoinon?" Harry mumbled from the bed next to hers.

"We didn't know you were here already!" Ron's voice exclaimed. Liza sat up just in time to see Ron smacking Harry in the head.

"Ron, don't hit him!" Hermione scolded. She moved over to Liza's bed and sat on the end of it, adding, "Good morning, Liza."

"Morning," Liza replied as Harry put his glasses on his face.

"All right?" Ron asked, grinning down at his best friend.

"Never been better," Harry answered, although he was rubbing his head. "You?"

"Not bad," Ron said, plopping down onto one of the many unmarked cardboard boxes in the room. "When did you get here? Mum's only just told us!"

"About one o'clock this morning," Harry answered.

"Were the Muggles all right? Did they treat you okay?" Ron demanded.

"Same as usual," Harry reported, "they didn't talk to me much, but I like it better that way. How're you, Hermione?"

"Oh, I'm fine," she replied.

"What's the time?" Harry asked. "Have we missed breakfast?"

"Don't worry about that, Mum's bringing you both up a tray; she reckons you look underfed," Ron added to Harry. "So what's been going on?"

"Nothing much, I've just been stuck at my aunt's and uncle's, haven't I?" Harry pointed out.

"Come off it!" Ron scoffed. "You've been off with Dumbledore!"

"It wasn't that exciting, was it, Liza?" Harry asked.

"Not really," Liza agreed. "He just wanted us to help him persuade this old teacher to come out of retirement. His name's Horace Slughorn."

"Oh," Ron said, "We thought—" Hermione glared at him, and he quickly finished, "—we thought it'd be something like that."

"You did?" Harry asked, looking thoroughly unconvinced.

"Yeah…yeah, now Umbridge has left, obviously we need a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, don't we?" Ron said. "So, er, what's he like?"

"He looks a bit like a walrus, and he used to be Head of Slytherin," Harry said. "Something wrong, Hermione?"

"No, of course not!" Hermione said, flushing slightly. "So, um, did Slughorn seem like he'll be a good teacher?"

"Dunno," Harry said. "He can't be worse than Umbridge, can he?"

"I know someone who's worse than Umbidge." Ginny had just entered the room, looking irritable, and Liza knew immediately that she meant Fleur. "Hi, Harry," Ginny added.

"What's up with you?" Ron asked.

"It's _her_ ," Ginny said, dropping unceremoniously onto the end of Harry's bed. "She's driving me mad."

"What did she do this time?" Liza asked.

"It's the way she talks to me—you'd think I was about three!" Ginny exclaimed.

"I know," Hermione said sympathetically. She lowered her voice and added, "She's so full of herself."

"C'mon, she's not that bad," Liza said.

"Can't you two lay off her for five seconds?" Ron demanded.

"Oh, that's right, defend her," Ginny sneered at her brother. "We all know you can't get enough of her."

"Who are you—?" Harry spoke up, but he wasn't able to finish his question because the bedroom door opened once again. He pulled the blankets up so fast that Ginny fell off the bed and onto the floor.

"'Arry," Fleur said, entering the room with a tray full of breakfast foods. "Eet 'as been too long!" She crossed the room to Harry, Mrs. Weasley trailing and looking a bit annoyed.

"There was no need to bring up the tray, I was just about to do it myself!" she huffed.

"Eet was no trouble," Fleur said, plopping the tray onto Harry's lap. Then she kissed him on both cheeks. "I 'ave been longing to see 'im." Then, picking up one of the plates, she spun around to Liza and handed it over. "A pleasure to see you again, Liza!" she added.

"Good morning, Fleur," Liza said, accepting the plate of food. Fleur beamed and turned back to Harry.

"You remember my seester, Gabrielle?" she asked. "She never stops talking about 'Arry Potter. She will be delighted to see you again."

"Oh…is she here too?" Harry said.

"No, no, silly boy," Fleur replied with a giggle, "I mean next summer, when we—but you do not know?" She looked over at Mrs. Weasley.

"We hadn't got around to telling him yet," Mrs. Weasley mumbled. Fleur turned her head back to Harry so quickly that she hit Mrs. Weasley in the face with her hair.

"Bill and I are going to be married!" Fleur exclaimed gleefully, clapping her hands together.

"Oh," Harry said. "Wow. Er—congratulations!" Fleur kissed him on the cheek again.

"Bill is very busy at ze moment, working very 'ard, and I only work part-time at Gringotts for my Eenglish, so he brought me 'ere for a few days to get to know 'is family properly," Fleur explained. "I was so pleased to 'ear you would be coming—zere isn't much to do 'ere, unless you like cooking and chickens! Well—enjoy your breakfast, 'Arry!" Then she left the room, shutting the door behind her on her way out. Mrs. Weasley made a noise under her breath.

"Mum hates her," Ginny interpreted.

"I do not hate her!" Mrs. Weasley said in a hushed voice. "I just think they've hurried into this engagement, that's all!"

"They've known each other a year," Ron said, staring at the bedroom door with unfocused eyes.

"Well, that's not very long!" Mrs. Weasley insisted. "I know why it's happened, of course. It's all this uncertainty with You-Know-Who coming back, people think they might be dead tomorrow, so they're rushing all sorts of decisions they'd normally take time over. It was the same last time he was powerful, people eloping left, right, and center—"

"Including you and Dad," Ginny cut in.

"Yes, well, your father and I were made for each other, what was the point in waiting?" Mrs. Weasley waved Ginny off. "Whereas Bill and Fleur…well…what have they really got in common? He's a hard-working, down-to-earth sort of person, whereas she's—"

"A cow," Ginny finished for her mother. "But Bill's not that down-to-earth. He's a Curse-Breaker, isn't he, he likes a bit of adventure, a bit of glamour… I expect that's why he's gone for Phlegm." Harry, Hermione, and Liza all snorted.

"Stop calling her that, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley commanded. "Well, I'd better get on… Eat your eggs while they're warm, Harry." She also left the room, and Harry went to his breakfast. Ron, meanwhile, was shaking his head as though trying to clear it.

"Don't you get used to her if she's staying in the same house?" Harry asked.

"Well, you do," Ron replied, "but if she jumps out at you unexpectedly, like then…"

"It's pathetic," Hermione growled. She got up and went to the other side of the room, crossing her arms and glaring at Ron.

"You don't really want her around forever?" Ginny asked. Ron shrugged, and Ginny continued, "Well, Mum's going to put a stop to it if she can, I bet you anything."

"How's she going to manage that?" Harry asked.

"She keeps trying to get Tonks round for dinner," Ginny explained. "I think she's hoping Bill will fall for Tonks instead. I hope he does, I'd much rather have her in the family."

"Yeah, that'll work," Ron said sarcastically. "Listen, no bloke in his right mind's going to fancy Tonks when Fleur's around. I mean, Tonks is okay-looking when she isn't doing stupid things to her hair and her nose, but—"

"Ronald Weasley, that is a terrible thing to say," Liza scolded.

"Plus, Tonks is a damn sight nicer than _Phlegm_ ," Ginny added darkly.

"And she's more intelligent, she's an Auror!" Hermione chimed in.

"Fleur's not stupid, she was good enough to enter the Triwizard Tournament," Harry pointed out.

"Not you as well!" Hermione moaned.

"I suppose you like the way Phlegm says ''Arry,' do you?" Ginny questioned.

"No," Harry protested, "I was just saying Phlegm—I mean, Fleur—"

"I'd much rather have Tonks in the family," Ginny cut him off. "At least she's a laugh."

"She hasn't been much of a laugh lately," Ron said. "Every time I've seen her she's look more like Moaning Myrtle."

"That's not fair," Hermione said. "She still hasn't gotten over what happened…you know… I mean, he was her cousin!"

"Tonks and Sirius barely knew each other!" Ron said. "Sirius was in Azkaban half her life and before that their families never met—"

"That's not the point," Hermione snapped. "She thinks it was her fault he died!"

"How does she work that one out?" Harry asked.

"Well, she was fighting Bellatrix Lestrange, wasn't she?" Hermione pointed out. "I think she feels that if only she had finished her off, Bellatrix couldn't have killed Sirius."

"That's stupid," Ron said.

"It's survivor's guilt," Liza corrected. "I know Lupin's tried to make her feel better, but she's still not looking well. She's actually having trouble with her Metamorphosing."

"With her—?" Harry asked.

"She can't change her appearance like she used to," Hermione explained. "I think her powers must have been affected by shock, or something."

"I didn't know that could happen," Harry said.

"Nor did I," Hermione said, "but I suppose if you're really depressed…"

The door opened again, distracting the five of them.

"Ginny," Mrs. Weasley said, poking her head into the room, "come downstairs and help me with lunch."

"I'm talking to this lot!" Ginny exclaimed incredulously.

"Now!" Mrs. Weasley commanded sharply. She left again, and they heard her descending the stairs.

"She only wants me there so she doesn't have to be alone with Phlegm!" Ginny spat. She swung her hair like Fleur often did, and then she did a few ballerina leaps across the room. "You lot had better come down quickly, too," she added as she left through the door.

Harry and Liza went back to finishing their breakfasts, while Hermione rummaged through some of the cardboard boxes.

"What's this?" she asked after a few moments. She held up what looked like a handheld telescope.

"Dunno," Ron answered, "but if Fred and George have left it here, it's probably not ready for the joke shop yet, so be careful."

"Your mum said the shop's going well," Harry commented. "Said Fred and George have got a real flair for business."

"That's an understatement," Ron said. "They're raking in the Galleons! I can't wait to see the place, we haven't been to Diagon Alley yet, because Mum says Dad's got to be there for extra security and he's been really busy at work, but it sounds excellent."

"I could talk to my dad," Liza offered. "Maybe he'd be able to come with us to Diagon as extra security."

"You'd have to talk to Mum, as well," Ron said. "I know that Dad wants to see the shop, too, at any rate."

"And what about Percy?" Harry asked. Percy was the third oldest of the Weasley children, and he'd had a falling out with the rest of the family a year prior. "Is he talking to your mum and dad again?"

"Nope," Ron answered simply.

"But he knows your dad was right all along now about Voldemort being back—" Harry said, a look of disbelief on his face.

"Dumbledore says people find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong than being right," Hermione said. "I heard him telling your mum, Ron."

"Sounds like the sort of mental thing Dumbledore would say," Ron quipped.

"He's going to be giving me private lessons this year," Harry said.

"You, too?" Liza asked. Ron and Hermione both made noises of shock and amazement.

"You kept that quiet!" Ron said. "Both of you are getting private lessons?"

"I only just remembered," Harry said. "He told me last night in your broom shed."

"Ah, so that's what he wanted to talk to you about," Liza said. "Dumbledore said he's going to train me in Occlumency and other defensive stuff that we might not get to in class."

"Lucky!" Hermione breathed.

"What about you, Harry?" Ron asked eagerly.

Harry put his silverware down onto the tray, not looking at Ron or Hermione.

"I don't know exactly why he's going to be giving me lessons, but I think it must be because of the prophecy," Harry said. Liza nodded in understanding.

"Makes sense," she murmured. Ron and Hermione, however, exchanged a confused look.

"You know, the one they were trying to steal at the Ministry," Harry clarified for them.

"Nobody knows what it said, though," Hermione said. "It got smashed."

"Although the _Prophet_ says—" Ron started, but Hermione quickly stopped him with a, "Shh!"

"The _Prophet_ 's got it right," Harry said, finally looking up at his friends. Liza looked at Ron and Hermione, too. Hermione looked scared, and Ron was surprised. Harry went on, "That glass ball that smashed wasn't the only record of the prophecy. I heard the whole thing in Dumbledore's office, he was the one the prophecy was made to, so he could tell me. From what it said," Harry paused to take a breath, "it looks like I'm the one who's got to finish off Voldemort… At least, it said neither of us could live while the other survives."

"And you knew?" Hermione asked Liza.

"Yeah," Liza answered. "I was in Dumbledore's office when he told Harry about it. It was the same night that he told Harry that I'm his sister."

There was silence for a few minutes after this as Ron and Hermione contemplated this new information. But then there was a loud bang and a cloud of black smoke where Hermione was standing.

"Hermione!" Harry, Ron, and Liza cried. Hermione stepped forward from the smoke, coughing and sputtering, still holding the telescope. One of her eyes was rapidly bruising.

"'Mione!" Liza gasped, hoping out of bed and rushing towards her friend. "That's a nasty black eye!"

"I squeezed it and it—it punched me!" Hermione moaned. She held out the telescope, where a tiny boxing glove on a spring was hanging from the end of it.

"Don't worry," Ron said, obviously trying not to laugh, "Mum'll fix that, she's good at healing minor injuries—"

"Oh well, never mind that now!" Hermione said, hurrying over to Harry's bed. "Harry, oh, Harry…" She dropped down onto the edge of the bed. "We wondered, after we got back from the Ministry… Obviously, we didn't want to say anything to you, but from what Lucius Malfoy said about the prophecy, how it was about you and Voldemort, well, we thought it might be something like this… Oh, Harry…" There was a pause, and then she asked, "Are you scared?"

"Not as much as I was," Harry answered honestly. "When I first heard it, I was…but now, it seems as though I always knew I'd have to face him in the end…"

"When we heard Dumbledore was collecting you in person, we thought he might be telling you something or showing you something to do with the prophecy," Ron said. "And we were kind of right, weren't we? He wouldn't be giving you lessons if he thought you were a goner, wouldn't waste his time—he must think you've got a chance!"

"Of course Dumbledore thinks Harry has a chance!" Liza said.

"I wonder what he'll teach you, Harry?" Hermione wondered aloud. "Really advanced defensive magic, probably…powerful countercurses…anti-jinxes…and evasive enchantments generally. Well, at least you know one lessons you'll be having this year, that's one more than Ron, Liza, and me. I wonder when our O.W.L. results will come?"

"Can't be long now," Liza said. "They did say we'd get them sometime in July…"

"Hang on," Harry said. "I think Dumbledore said our O.W.L. results would be arriving today!"

"Today?" Hermione practically screamed. " _Today_? But why didn't you—oh my God—you should have said—" She jumped to her feet and added, "I'm going to see whether any owls have come…" She ran from the room.

"I think I'll just get dressed now," Liza said. She picked up her bag and went down to Ginny's room, which was empty. She quickly changed out of her pajamas. When she was dressed, she went downstairs to see Hermione sitting at the table, drumming her fingers in anticipation.

"No owls yet?" Liza asked, slipping into a chair.

"No," Hermione replied glumly. Mrs. Weasley came into the room, took one look at Hermione's face, and gave a tiny shriek of shock.

"Hermione, what happened?" she asked.

"A punching telescope that was left in Fred's and George's bedroom," Hermione replied. Mrs. Weasley pulled her wand out and tapped the skin around Hermione's eyes. Fleur and Ginny also came into the kitchen, still working on the preparations for lunch.

Five minutes later, Harry and Ron entered the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley was still trying to figure out how to get rid of Hermione's black eye. She'd even pulled out her copy of _The Healer's Helpmate_.

"It just won't budge," she said. "This has always worked before, I just can't understand it."

"It'll be Fred's and George's idea of a funny joke, making sure it can't come off," Ginny commented.

"But it's got to come off!" Hermione wailed. "I can't go around looking like this forever!"

"You won't, dear, we'll find an antidote, don't worry," Mrs. Weasley said soothingly.

"Bill told me 'ow Fred and George are very amusing!" Fleur said, chuckling.

"Yes, I can hardly breathe for laughing," Hermione growled. She stood up and began pacing the floor in front of the window. "Mrs. Weasley, you're quite, quite sure no owls have arrived this morning?"

"Yes, dear, I'd have noticed," Mrs. Weasley answered. "But it's barely nine, there's still plenty of time…"

"I know I messed up Ancient Runes," Hermione mumbled to herself, "I definitely made at least one serious mistranslation. And the Defense Against the Dark Arts practical was no good at all. I thought Transfiguration went all right at the time, but looking back—"

"Hermione, will you shut up, you're not the only one who's nervous!" Ron snapped. "And when you've got your ten 'Outstanding' O.W.L.s…"

"Don't, don't, don't!" Hermione screeched. "I know I've failed everything!"

"Hermione, you didn't fail everything," Liza said firmly.

"What happens if we fail?" Harry asked.

"We discuss our options with our Head of House, I asked Professor McGonagall at the end of last term," Hermione answered immediately. Liza looked at Ginny, who shrugged.

"At Beauxbatons we 'ad a different way of doing things," Fleur said. "I think eet was better. We sat our examinations after six years of study, not five, and then—"

Hermione screamed, pointing out the window. Four shadows were coming towards the Burrow, growing clearer every second.

"They're definitely owls," Ron said, joining Hermione at the window.

"And there are four of them," Harry said, also standing next to the others. Liza carefully took her place next to her friends.

"One for each of us," she murmured.

"Oh no…oh no…oh no…" Hermione breathed.

The owls came into view, four large tawnies. The closer they flew, the easier it was to see that they were each carrying an envelope.

"Oh _no_!" Hermione moaned. Mrs. Weasley stepped up to the window and opened it, letting the four owls into the kitchen. They landed on the table in a line and held their legs out. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Liza went to the owl with the correctly labeled envelope and untied them. The owls took off out the window.

Liza took a deep, calming breath before opening her envelope. There was a single piece of parchment inside.

 _ **Ordinary Wizarding Level Results**_

 _ **Pass Grades Fail Grades  
**_ _Outstanding (O) Poor (P)  
Exceeds Expectations (E) Dreadful (D)  
Acceptable (A) Troll (T)_

 _ **Elizabeth Lily Jones has achieved:**_

 _Arithmancy E  
Astronomy A  
Care of Magical Creatures E  
Charms O  
Defense Against the Dark Arts E  
Herbology E  
History of Magic A  
Muggle Studies O  
Potions E  
Transfiguration E_

Liza couldn't help the smile that came over her face. She had passed every class she had taken, including all the ones she wanted to continue to take for the next two years. She was extremely pleased with the two 'Outstandings' she had received. Looking up, she saw Ron and Harry looking happy with their exam results, as well.

"Only failed Divination and History of Magic, and who cares about them?" Ron said. "Here—swap—" He held out his grades for Harry and Liza to look at. Harry and Liza also showed each other their grades.

"Knew you'd be top at Defense Against the Dark Arts," Ron said to Harry.

"Yeah, no kidding," Liza agreed.

"Liza, how in the world did you pass History of Magic?" Ron asked.

"I paid attention and studied my notes," Liza quipped, nudging him in the shoulder.

"We've done all right, haven't we?" Ron asked after the three of them were done looking at each other's grades.

"Well done!" Mrs. Weasley said after looking over Ron's grades. She mussed up his hair lovingly. "Seven O.W.L.s, that's more than Fred and George got together!"

"Hermione?" Ginny asked. Liza turned to see Hermione still bent over her exam results. "How did you do?"

"I—not bad," Hermione replied.

"Oh, come off it," Ron said. He went over to her and pulled the paper out of her hand. "Yep—nine 'Outstandings' and one 'Exceeds Expectations' at Defense Against the Dark Arts." He shook his head and sighed. "You're actually disappointed, aren't you?" Hermione shook her head.

"Ron, don't be mean," Liza scolded.

"I'm not being mean," Ron insisted. Then he grinned and said, "Well, we're N.E.W.T. students now! Mum, are there any more sausages?"

Liza shook her head but smiled. She looked back over her grades, feeling proud of herself and excited for the school year to come.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	4. Chapter 4 The Weasley Twins' Pride & Joy

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 4 – The Weasley Twins' Pride and Joy**

The rest of July for Liza was spent with the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione. They played a lot of Quidditch—Harry and Liza against Ginny and Ron. Liza, never having played a formal game of Quidditch in her life, found out that she was glad she'd never considered joining the Gryffindor team at school. She liked flying just fine, but trying to catch and throw the Quaffle while someone threw apples (what the Weasleys used as Bludgers) at you was much more difficult.

The happiness they should have been feeling, however, was dampened by the disappearances and deaths reported almost daily in the _Prophet_. Liza usually stayed at the Burrow until after dinner, when Mr. Weasley and Bill would come home from work, sometimes with news before it hit the _Prophet_.

On Harry's and Liza's sixteenth birthday, Mrs. Weasley prepared a small feast for the celebration. As Mrs. Weasley was setting out the dessert, Lupin arrived with grim news.

"There have been another couple of dementor attacks," he reported gloomily. Mrs. Weasley handed him a plate of birthday cake. "And they've found Igor Karkaroff's body in a shack up north. The Dark Mark had been set over it—well, frankly, I'm surprised he stayed alive for even a year after deserting the Death Eaters. Sirius's brother, Regulus, only managed a few days as far as I can remember."

"Yes, well," Mrs. Weasley said hastily, "perhaps we should talk about something diff—"

"Did you hear about Florean Fortescue, Remus?" Bill asked, cutting his mother off. "The man who ran—"

"—the ice-cream place in Diagon Alley?" Harry finished for him. "He used to give me free ice creams. What's happened to him?"

"Dragged off, by the look of his place," Bill answered.

"Why?" Ron asked.

"Who knows?" Bill said heavily. "He must've upset them somehow. He was a good man, Florean."

"Talking of Diagon Alley," Mr. Weasley said, "looks like Ollivander's gone, too."

"The wandmaker?" Ginny asked.

"That's the one," Mr. Weasley nodded. "Shop's empty. No sign of a struggle. No one knows whether he left voluntarily or was kidnapped."

"But what'll people do for wands?" Liza questioned.

"They'll make do with other makers," Lupin answered. "But Ollivander was the best, and if the other side have got him it's not so good for us."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning, Liza woke up early to find an owl had arrived for her carrying her Hogwarts letter. She quickly opened it, scanned the welcome letter, and checked over her booklist.

"Mom!" she called, going down the stairs and into the kitchen. Sure enough, Sue was standing over the stove, cooking breakfast. "The new booklist has arrived. I'll talk to the Weasleys and see when they're planning on going into Diagon Alley."

"Sounds good, but let us know when you decide," Sue replied. "Your father and I want to go with you. Do you want any breakfast?"

"No, that's okay," Liza said. "I'll just have something at the Burrow. I'll be back later!"

"Stay safe," Sue said as Liza went out into the sitting room. She pulled the flower pot off the mantle and grabbed a handful of Floo powder from the vase. Then, after throwing the powder into the fire, she stepped into the flames and said, "The Burrow!"

"Good morning, Liza," Mrs. Weasley said, accustomed to seeing Liza falling out of their fireplace in the morning. "I think they're all still upstairs getting dressed."

"I'll wait down here," Liza said. "I got my Hogwarts letter this morning, so I'm sure the others have gotten theirs, too." Mrs. Weasley turned and pointed to a pile of mail on the windowsill, where Liza could see four Hogwarts letters sitting.

A few minutes later, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny entered the kitchen, exchanging greetings with Liza.

"The booklists have come," Liza reported. "Mrs. Weasley says yours are on the windowsill over there." Hermione went over to the pile and pulled the letters out, handing them to the other Hogwarts students.

"Hey!" Harry exclaimed. He pulled a badge out of his envelope and showed it to the others.

"Wow, congratulations!" Liza said. "Quidditch Captain!"

"That gives you equal status with prefects!" Hermione said, beaming. "You can use our special bathroom now and everything!"

"Wow, I remember when Charlie wore one of these," Ron said, taking the badge from Harry to look at it more closely. "Harry, this is so cool, you're my Captain—if you let me back on the team, I suppose, ha ha…"

"Well, I don't suppose we can put off a trip to Diagon Alley much longer now you've got these," Mrs. Weasley said, examining Ron's booklist. "We'll go on Saturday as long as your father doesn't have to go into work again. I'm not going there without him."

"My parents want to come, as well," Liza said. Mrs. Weasley nodded her approval.

"Mum, d'you honestly think You-Know-Who's going to be hiding behind a bookshelf in Flourish and Blotts?" Ron asked.

"Fortescue and Ollivander went on holiday, did they?" Mrs. Weasley shot back. "If you think security's a laughing matter you can stay behind and I'll get your things myself—"

"No," Ron backtracked immediately, "I wanna come, I want to see Fred's and George's shop!"

"Then you just buck up your ideas, young man, before I decide you're too immature to come with us!" Mrs. Weasley snapped. She picked up her family clock and put it on top of the pile of freshly cleaned towels in the laundry basket. "And that goes for returning to Hogwarts as well!" she added as she swept from the room.

"Blimey…" Ron said, "you can't even make a joke around here anymore…"

When Saturday morning came around, Liza and her parents left early for the Burrow to have breakfast there. Everyone but Bill and Fleur were planning on going to Diagon that day. When they were all settled around the table, Bill passed Harry a sack of money across the table.

"Where's mine?" Ron asked.

"That's already Harry's, idiot," Bill said. "I got it out of your vault for you, Harry, because it's taking about five hours for the public to get to their gold at the moment, the goblins have tightened security so much. Two days ago Arkie Philpott had a Probity Probe stuck up his… Well, trust me, this way's easier."

"Thanks, Bill," Harry said.

"'E is always so thoughtful," Fleur said dreamily. Ginny pretended to throw up behind her, and Harry started choking on his cereal. Ron smacked his back a few times.

After breakfast, a special Ministry car arrived at the Burrow. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley ushered Liza, Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny into the backseat of the car before joining the driver up front. Sue and Dan had decided to Apparate into Diagon Alley so they wouldn't have to squeeze into the car, as well.

"It's good Dad can get us these again," Ron commented, stretching out in the seat.

"Don't get used to it, it's only because of Harry," Mr. Weasley said. "He's been given top-grade security status. And we'll be joining up with additional security at the Leaky Cauldron, too."

The car took off. In hardly any time at all, the driver was pulling up to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Here you are, then," he announced. "I'm to wait for you, any idea how long you'll be?"

"A couple of hours, I expect," Mr. Weasley answered. "Ah, good, he's here!" Liza and the others turned to look out the car window and saw their half-giant friend and Hogwarts gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid standing with Dan and Sue on the sidewalk.

"Harry!" Hagrid said, pulling Harry into a hug as soon as they had piled out of the car. "Buckbeak—Witherwings, I mean—yeh should see him, Harry, he's so happy ter be back in the open air—"

"Glad he's pleased," Harry said. "We didn't know 'security' meant you!"

"I know, jus' like old times, innit?" Hagrid beamed. "See, the Ministry wanted ter send a bunch o' Aurors, but Dumbledore said I'd do." He stood even taller, looking very proud. "Let's get goin' then—after yeh, Molly, Arthur—"

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley entered the Leaky Cauldron first, followed by Dan and Sue and then the Hogwarts students. Liza was surprised to find the pub completely empty except for the barman, Tom.

"Jus' passin' through today, Tom, sure yeh understand," Hagrid said, "Hogwarts business, yeh know." Tom merely nodded, looking downcast.

Out in the courtyard at the back of the pub, Hagrid pulled out his pink umbrella and tapped a specific brick in the wall. An archway formed at once, revealing Diagon Alley to the group. They all stepped through and then paused.

"This is a bit depressing," Liza murmured to Ginny and Hermione. Usually, Diagon Alley was full of shoppers, and the windows of the shops were covered in bright-colored signs and posters. Now the windows had been decorated with large versions of the Ministry pamphlets about how to stay safe in difficult times. There were also wanted posters of various Death Eaters all around.

A few of the shops looked as though they were closed for good, with their windows boarded up. Along the streets, some temporary stalls had appeared. On their way past Flourish and Blotts, they saw one of these stalls with a cardboard sign on the front reading:

 _AMULETS_

 _Effective Against Werewolves, Dementors, and Inferi_

"One for your little girl, madam?" a small wizard asked, holding out his product and looking at Ginny. "Protect her pretty neck?"

"If I were on duty…" Mr. Weasley grumbled, giving the wizard an angry look.

"Yes, but don't go arresting anyone now, dear, we're in a hurry," Mrs. Weasley said, checking her list. "I think we'd better do Madam Malkin's first, Hermione wants new dress robes, and Ron's showing much too much ankle in his school robes, and you must need new ones too, Harry, you've grown so much—"

"I need some new stuff, too," Liza chimed in.

"Well, then, come on, everyone—" Molly said.

"Molly, it doesn't make sense for all of us to go to Madam Malkin's," Mr. Weasley said. "Why don't those four go with Hagrid and Dan, and we can go to Flourish and Blotts and get everyone's school books?"

"I don't know," Mrs. Weasley fretted. "Hagrid, do you think—?"

"Don' fret, they'll be fine with me, Molly," Hagrid said. He shooed her off, and Mrs. Weasley hesitantly went off with her husband, daughter, and Sue to Flourish and Blotts.

Hagrid and Dan followed Liza, Harry, Hermione, and Ron down the alley until they came to Madam Malkin's. They noticed that their fellow shoppers were looking quite as anxious as Mrs. Weasley had. Nobody stopped for too long, they just stayed close together in their own groups.

"Migh' be a bit of a squeeze in there with all of us," Hagrid commented, glancing into the window of Madam Malkin's shop. "We'll stand guard outside, all righ'?" Dan nodded his agreement, and Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza went into the shop. As soon as the door had shut, they heard a familiar voice coming from nearby.

"…not a child, in case you haven't noticed, Mother. I am perfect capable of doing my shopping _alone_."

"Now, dear," Madam Malkin, who was obviously helping the customer, said, "your mother's quite right, none of us is supposed to go wandering around on our own anymore, it's nothing to do with being a child—"

"Watch where you're sticking that pin, will you!" Draco Malfoy came into view, wearing a set of dark green robes. He went to the mirror to examine himself, but after a few seconds he noticed Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Liza standing behind him.

"If you're wondering what that smell is, Mother, a Mudblood just walked in," Malfoy sneered.

"I don't think there's any need for language like that!" Madam Malkin said. She came out from behind a rack, holding her wand and a tape measure. "And I don't want wands drawn in my shop either!" she added, looking pointedly at Harry and Ron.

"Stop it," Liza said swiftly, grabbing both their wrists and pushing them down.

"Yeah, like you'd dare do magic out of school," Malfoy guffawed. "Who blacked your eye, Granger? I want to send them flowers."

"That's quite enough!" Madam Malkin snapped. She glanced over her shoulder. "Madam—please—"

Narcissa Malfoy came out from behind the clothes rack.

"Put those away," she said to Harry and Ron. "If you attack my son again, I shall ensure that it is the last thing you ever do."

"They didn't attack him," Liza said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, and what are you going to do?" Harry asked. "Going to get a few Death Eater pals to do us in, are you?" Madam Malkin gasped.

"Really, you shouldn't accuse—" she sputtered, "dangerous thing to say—wands away, please!" Harry didn't listen to her, and Mrs. Malfoy smirked.

"I see that being Dumbledore's favorite has give you a false sense of security, Harry Potter," she said. "But Dumbledore won't always be there to protect you." Harry exaggeratingly glanced around the shop.

"Wow…look at that…he's not here now!" he said. "So why not have a go? They might be able to find you a double cell in Azkaban with your loser of a husband!" Malfoy stepped towards Harry but stumbled on the end of his robes. Ron laughed.

"Don't you dare talk to my mother like that, Potter!" Malfoy growled.

"It's all right, Draco," Mrs. Malfoy said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "I expect Potter will be reunited with dear Sirius before I am reunited with Lucius." Liza's eyes narrowed at the woman.

"You know, I don't think threatening people is going to disprove that you are in league with Death Eaters," she pointed out bluntly. Harry took a step forward, but Hermione grabbed his arm.

"Harry, no!" she said. "Think… You mustn't… You'll be in such trouble…"

Madam Malkin didn't seem to know what to do, so she went back to Malfoy.

"I think this left sleeve could come up a little bit more, dear," she said, "let me just—"

"Ouch!" Malfoy shouted, pulling his arm out of her grasp. "Watch where you're putting your pins, woman! Mother—I don't think I want these anymore—" He pulled the robes over his head and dumped them unceremoniously to the ground.

"You're right, Draco," Mrs. Malfoy, giving Hermione a withering look, "now I know the kind of scum that shops here… We'll do better at Twilfitt and Tatting's." The two of them pushed past Harry, Hermione, Liza, and Ron and left the shop.

"Well, _really_!" Madam Malkin said, picking up Malfoy's discarded robes. She waved her wand at them, clearing the dust away.

She was thoroughly distracted as she fitted Harry, Ron, and Liza with new sets of plain school robes. Then she attempted to give Hermione wizard's dress robes instead of witch's. Finally, when they had paid for their garments, she hastily bowed them from her shop, obviously happy to see them go.

"Got ev'rything?" Hagrid asked.

"Just about," Harry replied. "Did you see the Malfoys?"

"Yeah," Hagrid said. "Bu' they wouldn' dare make trouble in the middle o' Diagon Alley, Harry. Don' worry abou' them."

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and Sue all appeared at that moment, carrying bags full of books.

"Everyone all right?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "Got your robes? Right then, we can pop in at the Apothecary and Eeylops on the way to Fred's and George's—stick close, now…"

Liza, Harry, and Ron didn't bother to buy anything at the Apothecary; none of them were planning on taking Potions when they returned to school. Hermione and Ginny, however, made sure to restock their ingredients. Then they all trooped into Eeylops Owl Emporium so Harry and Ron could pick up some food for their owls.

"We really haven't got too long," Mrs. Weasley said as they approached Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Fred's and George's joke shop. "So we'll just have a quick look around and then back to the car. We must be close, that's number ninety-two…ninety-four…"

" _Whoa_ ," Ron breathed, halting in the middle of the street.

They had reached the joke shop, that much was certain. It was the only shop that looked lively and cheerful compared to the rest of the alley. The windows were full of products that were stopping shoppers along the street in midstride. One of the windows sported a giant purple sign with flashing yellow words.

 _WHY ARE YOU WORRYING ABOUT  
YOU-KNOW-WHO?  
YOU SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT  
U-NO-POO—  
THE CONSTIPATION SENSATION  
THAT'S GRIPPING THE NATION!_

Harry, Ron, Liza, and Ginny started to laugh. Mrs. Weasley, on the other hand, let out a strangled moan.

"They'll be murdered in their beds!" she groaned quietly.

"No they won't!" Ron argued. "This is brilliant!"

"C'mon!" Liza said eagerly. Harry and Ron led the way into the shop, follow closely by Liza and Ginny.

The inside of the shop was packed full of shoppers. Liza could hardly get passed all the crowds. She looked around in amazement at all the products that were piled all the way to the ceilings. There were Skiving Snackboxes, fake wands, various kinds of quills, and all kinds of wonderful things.

"'Patented Daydream Charms…'" Hermione read off the back of a box. "'One simple incantation and you will enter a top-quality, highly realistic, thirty-minute daydream, easy to fit into the average school lesson and virtually undetectable (side effects include vacant expression and minor drooling). Not for sale to under-sixteens.' You know, that really is extraordinary magic!" she added.

"For that, Hermione, you can have one for free," a voice behind them said. Liza whirled around to see Fred Weasley smiling at them.

"Fred!" she shouted, launching into his arms.

"Hey, Little E," he chuckled, hugging her back. When she pulled away, he turned to the others. "How are you Harry?" He and Harry shook hands. "And what's happened to your eye, Hermione?"

"Your punching telescope," Hermione answered.

"Oh blimey, I forgot about those," Fred said. "Here—" He pulled a tube from his pocket and handed it over. She unscrewed the cap and looked suspiciously at the yellow paste inside.

"Just dab it on, that bruise'll be gone within the hour," Fred said cheerfully. "We had to find a decent bruise remover. We're testing most of our products on ourselves."

"It is _safe_ , isn't it?" Hermione asked cautiously.

"'Course it is," Fred said. "Come on, Harry, I'll give you a tour." Fred and Harry vanished into the crowd.

"This place is incredible!" Ginny exclaimed, pushing through the crowd to stand next to Liza and Hermione. "Who knew that Fred and George would do this well?"

"Harry, obviously," Liza said. "He gave them his Triwizard gold, after all." She turned to the display of daydream charms.

A few minutes later, Fred and Harry rejoined them.

"Haven't you girls found our special WonderWitch products yet?" Fred asked them. "Follow me, ladies…" He led them up to the front window, where a display full of pink-packaged products were visible. There was already a group of girls gathered around it, looking excited.

"There you go," Fred said. "Best range of love potions you'll find anywhere."

"Because apparently we need love potions," Liza said slyly.

"Do they work?" Ginny asked, looking skeptical.

"Certainly they work, for up to twenty-four hours at a time," Fred answered, "depending on the weight of the boy in question—"

"—and the attractiveness of the girl." George Weasley had appeared, finishing his brother's sentence. Liza squealed and hugged him tight as well.

"I would tell you that you need to visit home more often," Liza said, "but it looks like you've got your hands full here."

"Yeah, the shop's been booming," George said, grinning. "And I don't think any of you need love potions, no. Especially not our sister," he turned to look at Ginny, "not when she's already got about five boys on the go from what we've—"

"Whatever you've heard from Ron is a big fat lie," Ginny said matter-of-factly. She picked up a small pink pot and asked, "What's this?"

"Guaranteed ten-second pimple vanisher," Fred replied. "Excellent on everything from boils to blackheads, but don't change the subject. Are you or are you not currently going out with a boy called Dean Thomas?"

"Yes, I am," Ginny answered. "And last time I looked, he was definitely one boy, not five. What are those?" She pointed to a cage full of bright fluff balls, which were rolling around and squeaking.

"Pygmy Puffs," George said. "Miniature puffskeins, we can't breed them fast enough. So what about Michael Corner?"

"I dumped him, he was a bad loser," Ginny said, putting a finger through the bars of the cage. The Pygmy Puffs crowded around, sniffing at her. "They're really cute!"

"They're fairly cuddly, yes," Fred agreed. "But you're moving through boyfriends a bit fast, aren't you?" Ginny finally turned to her twin brothers, looking annoyed. She put her hands on her hips.

"It's none of your business," she said. "And I'll thank _you_ ," she shot at Ron, who had just appeared with an armful of products, "not to tell tales about me to these two!"

"That's three Galleons, nine Sickles, and a Knut," Fred said, counting the boxes Ron was carrying. "Cough up."

"I'm your brother!" Ron exclaimed.

"And that's our stuff you're nicking," Fred retorted. "Three Galleons, nine Sickles. I'll knock off the Knut."

"But I haven't got three Galleons, nine Sickles!" Ron whined.

"You'd better put it back then, and mind you put it on the right shelves," Fred said airily.

Ron swore and then dropped some of the boxes to send a rude hand gesture to Fred, which was seen by Mrs. Weasley as she joined them.

"If I see you do that again I'll jinx your fingers together," she warned.

"Mum, can I have a Pygmy Puff?" Ginny asked.

"A what?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Look, they're so sweet…" Ginny trailed off.

"I think so too," Liza said, turning back to the cage with Ginny. "I would love one. I wonder how Boots would like it?"

"Your cat is the calmest animal I've ever met, so she'd probably be fine with it," George said. "Here—" He opened the cage, reached into it, and plucked one of the Puffs out. He placed it into Liza's outstretched hand. Liza peered at the Puff; it was mostly purple with a bright pink spot in the middle of its back.

"Okay, I'm in love," Liza said, gazing at the Puff.

"Don't let your boyfriend hear you saying that," George joked. Liza froze for a moment before looking up at him.

"I don't have a boyfriend anymore," she mumbled.

"You broke up?" George asked in surprise. "Why, what happened?"

"His father's a Death Eater, but you already knew that," Liza said. "Since it came out that I'm Harry's twin sister, I figured that it would be even more dangerous for him to be…affiliated with me."

"That's so weird to think that you're Harry's sister," George said. "We've known you for five years now, and all of a sudden you're nearly as famous as he is."

"Don't remind me," Liza sighed. She had seen all the articles in various magazines, and she'd gotten quite a few owls from strangers. It had been very overwhelming. Thankfully, Dumbledore and the rest of the Order had made sure that there were no reporters bothering her for interviews.

"So how did John take it when you broke up with him?" George asked.

"He took it fairly well," Liza said. "I mean, he took it as well as I thought he would. He protested. I just hope that he understands why I did it." She sighed. "Can we talk about something else now?"

"How about getting you some food for your new Puff?" George said. He pulled a plastic bottle from the shelf and handed it over.

"How much?" Liza asked, reaching for her purse.

"No, no," George said. "It was just your birthday; consider this your present."

"George—" Liza tried to protest, but George shook his head.

"Don't worry about it," he said firmly. "I'll have to get back to you later, looks like there are some customers that need my help." He smiled and weaved through the crowd to get to a group of shoppers.

"Liza!" Ginny said excitedly. Liza turned to her, looking at the Puff Ginny was holding. It was all purple.

"I got one, too," Liza said, grinning.

"They can be friends," Ginny said fondly, holding her Puff out so that hers and Liza's could look at each other.

"What are you going to name yours?" Liza asked.

"I'm thinking Arnold," Ginny replied. "You?"

"Hmm," Liza said, frowning in thought. Then, with a faint smile, she said, "Orion." She looked around before asking, "Where did Harry, Ron, and Hermione go?"

"Dunno," Ginny answered. "They're probably on the other side of the shop or something. It's so crowded in here!"

"Come along, Ginny, Liza," Mrs. Weasley said. "We need to head back to the Leaky Cauldron. Fred! George! We're leaving now!" Fred and George hurried back over to say a quick goodbye to their family.

"Have fun at Hogwarts," George said to Ginny and Liza. "But not too much fun, you hear?" Ginny and Liza laughed. Then Sue and Dan ushered the girls out into the alley to wait with Hagrid. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were still in the joke shop looking for Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley came out into the road, looking frantic.

"We can't find Harry, Ron, or Hermione," she fretted, looking up at Hagrid desperately. "They haven't come out, have they?"

"Not tha' I've seen, Molly," Hagrid reported. "Bu' don' worry; they'll turn up." Mrs. Weasley wrung her hands together.

"Typical," Liza muttered to Ginny, who sniggered quietly so her mother wouldn't hear her.

It was only a few minutes later that Harry, Ron, and Hermione emerged from the shop, insisting that they had been in the back room the whole time. Mrs. Weasley eyed the three of them suspiciously, but rushed the group off down the alley back towards the Leaky Cauldron.

"Where were you really?" Liza whispered to Harry.

"I'll tell you later," he promised.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: The only reason Liza got a Pygmy Puff is because I wish I had one. Ha.**_


	5. Chapter 5 Lunch on the Train

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 5 –Lunch on the Train**

When they got back to the Burrow, Harry marched Hermione, Ron, and Liza all the way up to Ron's bedroom.

"At the joke shop, Ron, Hermione, and I saw Malfoy outside the window," Harry began immediately after Liza sat cross-legged on Ron's bed. "He had ditched his mum somewhere, so we decided to follow him."

"Of course you did," Liza said, folding her arms over her chest. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"You were busy looking at the Pygmy Puffs with Ginny," Harry said defensively.

"Yeah, yeah," Liza said. "So where did Malfoy go?"

"We'll give you three guesses," Ron said sarcastically. Liza had to think for a moment.

"Knockturn Alley?" Liza guessed.

"Bingo," Ron said. "And guess which shop he went into?" Liza shrugged.

"Borgin and Burkes," Harry said. "Remember that shop I accidentally Flooed into a few years ago?"

"Ooh, wasn't that the place with all the creepy stuff?" Liza asked. "Malfoy's father was selling stuff there, right?"

"Yeah," Harry said, nodding. "Anyways, Ron pulled out some Extendable Ears so we could hear what was going on in the shop. Malfoy was talking to Borgin about needing to fix something and Borgin needed to tell him how to do it."

"He didn't say what he was trying to fix?" Liza asked. Harry shook his head.

"He said that the thing needed to stay where it was so he couldn't bring it into the shop," Harry explained. "When Borgin said he didn't know if he'd be able to help, Malfoy showed him something that really scared him. And Malfoy also threatened to have Fenrir Greyback checking up on Borgin. Then, when Malfoy was about to leave, he told Borgin to keep something else that was there in the store safe."

"What, he couldn't just buy it?" Liza asked.

"Apparently not," Harry said. "Malfoy made Borgin swear he wouldn't sell it to anyone else, and also that he wouldn't tell anyone about what was happening."

"I went into the shop to see if Borgin would tell me what Malfoy didn't want sold," Hermione said, "but he knew what I was up to and told me to get out."

"Wow," Liza said. "I wonder what he wanted fixed…"

"You and me both," Harry said.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

For the rest of the summer holidays, Harry seemed obsessed with figuring out what Malfoy had been doing in Knockturn Alley. After the first few conversations, though, Hermione, Liza, and Ron were getting very tired of having the same discussion over and over again.

"Yes, I've already agreed it was fishy, Harry," Hermione sighed on the day before they were due to head back to school. She was sitting in the window of Fred's and George's old room with her new Arithmancy textbook in her lap. "But haven't we agreed there could be a lot of explanations?"

"Maybe he's broken his Hand of Glory," Ron said. He had his broomstick in his lap, and he was straightening the twigs of the tail. "Remember that shriveled-up arm Malfoy had?"

"But what about when he said, 'Don't forget to keep _that_ one safe'?" Harry questioned again. "That sounded to me like Borgin's got another one of the broken objects, and Malfoy wants both."

"You reckon?" Ron asked, wiping down the handle of his broom.

"Yeah, I do," Harry said. "Malfoy's father's in Azkaban. Don't you think Malfoy'd like revenge?"

"Malfoy, revenge?" Liza repeated. "I'm sure he's thought about it, but what's he going to be able to do?"

"That's my point, I don't know!" Harry sighed. "But he's up to something and I think we should take it seriously. His father's a Death Eater and—" He stopped suddenly, his eyes widening.

"Harry?" Liza asked.

"What's wrong?" Hermione added, putting her book down.

"Your scar's not hurting again, is it?" Ron asked.

"He's a Death Eater," Harry said. "He's replaced his father as a Death Eater!" There was a moment of silence, and then Ron broke into laughter.

" _Malfoy_?" he said. "He's sixteen, Harry! You think You-Know-Who would let _Malfoy_ join?"

"It seems very unlikely, Harry," Hermione agreed. "What makes you think—?"

"In Madam Malkin's," Harry said. "She didn't touch him, but he yelled and jerked his arm away from her when she went to roll up his sleeve. It was his left arm. He's been branded with the Dark Mark."

"Well…" Ron trailed off.

"I think he just wanted to get out of there, Harry," Liza reasoned.

"He showed Borgin something we couldn't see," Harry went on. "Something that seriously scared Borgin. It was the Mark, I know it—he was showing Borgin who he was dealing with, you saw how seriously Borgin took him!"

"I'm not sure, Harry…" Hermione said uneasily.

"Yeah, I still don't reckon You-Know-Who would let Malfoy join…" Ron added.

"Fine," Harry said, getting off his bed and picking up a pile of dirty robes. "I still think I'm right." Then he marched out of the room. Liza looked at Hermione and Ron.

"I can't believe he thinks Malfoy is a Death Eater," Ron said quietly. "I mean, really. Like You-Know-Who would take a teenager who was still in Hogwarts." Hermione and Liza shrugged.

"He's just looking for answers, like he always is," Liza said.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning, Liza arrived at the Burrow with Dan and Sue in tow. Her trunk was packed, and Boots and her new Pygmy Puff Orion were sharing Boots's cage. Boots had taken to the new creature quite quickly, and they would often nap together. Liza made a mental note to send George a letter letting him know.

"Good morning, good morning," Mrs. Weasley said, looking as frantic as she usually did. But there was no need for her anxiety that morning; for the first time, they were all ready to go with very little hassle. Liza speculated that it was because there were only five of them heading off to Hogwarts that year.

A pair of Ministry cars pulled up to the Burrow to take them into London. Bill and Fleur said their goodbyes as Ron and Harry got into the car with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Liza, Hermione, and Ginny got into the other car with Dan and Sue.

It was another surprisingly short ride to the train station, and there they found two Aurors waiting for them. The Aurors didn't say much as they herded the group into the station.

When they reached the barrier, Mrs. Weasley sent Harry first with one of the Aurors. The wizard grabbed Harry's arm and attempted to steer him through the barrier, but Harry pulled free.

"I can walk, thanks," he said. Then he pushed his trolley through the brick wall, with the Auror following closely behind him.

Hermione and Ginny went next, followed by Dan and Sue. Liza went with Ron, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley brought up the rear.

"Come on, let's find a compartment," Harry said.

"We can't, Harry," Hermione said. "Ron and I've got to go to the prefects' carriage first and then patrol the corridors for a bit."

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Harry said.

"You'd better get straight on the train, all of you, you've only got a few minutes to go," Mrs. Weasley said. "Well, have a lovely term, Ron…" She pulled her son into a hug.

"Mr. Weasley, can I have a quick word?" Harry asked.

"Of course," Mr. Weasley said. He and Harry moved away from the rest of the group, Liza watching them suspiciously for a few moments. Then she turned to her own parents.

"Goodbye, Liza," Sue said in a teary voice, wrapping her arms around Liza.

"It'll be okay, Mom," Liza said soothingly. She knew that Sue was nervous about letting Liza go off on her own. "Hogwarts is one of the safest places to be right now. It's got updated security _and_ Dumbledore."

"This is true," Sue said, letting go of her daughter. "Stay safe anyways. No wandering off."

"I won't wander off," Liza promised. Then she turned to her dad. "Bye, Daddy."

"Goodbye, princess," Dan said. "Do try and stay out of trouble this year."

"I'll do my best," Liza promised. Mrs. Weasley grabbed her and hugged her hard.

"Look after yourself," she said. "Now come along, you all need to get on the train."

Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Liza all pulled their things onto the train. Ron and Hermione promised to find Liza and Harry later, and they started down towards the front of the train where the prefects' carriage was. The whistle sounded as Ginny and Liza said their last goodbyes to their parents.

"Harry, quickly!" Mrs. Weasley called, looking over her shoulder at her husband and Harry. Harry sprinted forward, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley helped him with his trunk.

"Goodbye, Ginny, Liza," Mr. Weasley said hurriedly, smiling at the both of them.

"Bye, Dad!" Ginny said, as Liza said, "Bye, Mr. Weasley!"

"Now, dear, you're coming to us for Christmas, it's all fixed with Dumbledore, so we'll see you quite soon," Mrs. Weasley said to Harry as the door shut. The train began to pull out of the station. "You make sure you look after yourself and—" Mrs. Weasley hurried alongside the train as it started to pick up speed. "—be good and stay safe!" Harry and Liza waved out the window at the adults until they couldn't see them anymore.

"Well," Liza said, looking at her brother, "shall we?"

"Sure," Harry said. They dragged their trunks down the corridor, and Harry paused next to Ginny, who was standing nearby with a few friends.

"Fancy trying to find a compartment?" Harry asked her.

"I can't, Harry, I said I'd meet Dean," Ginny answered. "See you later. You too, Liza."

"Right," Harry said. Liza waved to Ginny, and Ginny set off to find her boyfriend. Ginny's friends were staring at Harry, who didn't know where to look.

"Hi, Harry, Liza!" a voice called from behind them.

"Neville!" Liza exclaimed, turning to see Neville Longbottom, their fellow sixth-year Gryffindor.

"Hello, Harry, Liza," another voice said. Behind Neville was Luna Lovegood, a fifth-year Ravenclaw they had met the year before.

"Luna, hi, how are you?" Harry asked.

"Very well, thank you," Luna said. She had a copy of _The Quibbler_ , her father's magazine, in her hands.

" _Quibbler_ still going strong, then?" Harry asked.

"Oh yes, circulation's well up," Luna replied.

"Let's find some seats," Liza said. "I don't know about you, but I'd rather not be standing out in the hall the entire journey." The four of them headed down the train in search of an empty compartment. Students they passed stuck their heads out of their compartments to stare at Harry as he walked by. Near the end of the train, they finally found an empty compartment.

"They're even staring at _us_!" Neville commented, gesturing between himself and Luna. "Because we're with you!"

"They're staring at you because you were at the Ministry too," Harry said. He and Neville started to lift their trunks into the overhead luggage racks. "Our little adventure was all over the _Daily Prophet_ , you must've seen it."

"Yes, I thought Gran would be angry about all the publicity," Neville said, "but she was really pleased. Says I'm starting to live up to my dad at long last. She bought me a new wand, look!" He pulled a new wand from his pocket and held it up for the others to see. "Cherry and unicorn hair. We think it was one of the last Ollivander ever sold, he vanished the next day—oi, come back here, Trevor!" His toad had hopped off the seat, and he went scrambling after it. When he got out from under the seat, they all sat down. Neville and Harry sat on one side, and Luna and Liza sat on the other.

"Neville, check this out!" Liza said, opening Boots's cage. Boots languidly stepped out, stretching on the seat, and Orion followed her curiously. Liza scooped up the Puff and held him out so Neville and Luna could look at him.

"What is it?" Neville asked, touching Orion's back with one finger.

"This is a Pygmy Puff," Liza answered. "His name is Orion. Fred and George Weasley are selling them at their joke shop. Did you get a chance to go when you were in Diagon Alley?"

"No," Neville replied, shaking his head. "Gran was in a hurry, didn't want to be out too long."

"Yeah, Mrs. Weasley didn't want us to spend too much time there, either," Liza said.

"Are we still doing D.A. meetings this year, Harry?" Luna asked, turning back to Harry.

"No point now we've got rid of Umbridge, is there?" Harry pointed out. Neville frowned in disappointment.

"I liked the D.A.!" he said. "I learned loads with you!"

"I enjoyed the meetings too," Luna said. "It was like having friends."

"We are your friends, Luna," Liza said, smiling at the girl. They heard noises coming from outside the compartment door, which was still open, and they all turned to see a group of fourth-year girls giggling outside.

"You ask him!" one of the girls said.

"No, you!" another one said.

"I'll do it!" A dark-haired girl stepped forward, looking squarely at Harry. "Hi, Harry, I'm Romilda, Romilda Vane. Why don't you join us in our compartment? You don't have to sit with _them_ ," she added in a loud whisper. Neville was under the seat again, looking for Trevor, and Luna had put on a pair of funny-looking glasses. Liza crossed her arms and gave the girl a hard look.

"They're friends of mine, and my sister," Harry said.

"Oh," Romilda said, looking a bit shocked. "Oh. Okay." She and her friends hurried away, shutting the door behind them.

"People expect you to have cooler friends than us," Luna commented.

"You are cool," Harry said. "None of them was at the Ministry. They didn't fight with me."

"That's a very nice thing to say," Luna said with a wide smile. Then she pushed the glasses—Spectrespecs, according to the front of her _Quibbler_ —up her nose and started to read.

"We didn't face _him_ , though," Neville said, finally holding up Trevor successfully. "You did. You should hear my gran talk about you. ' _That Harry Potter's got more backbone than the whole Ministry of Magic put together!_ ' She'd give anything to have you as a grandson…"

"Well, tough, because she's got you, and you're the perfect grandson," Liza said warmly. Neville flushed slightly.

"So how did you do on your O.W.L.s, Neville?" Harry asked, changing the subject.

"I did all right," Neville replied. "I got an O in Herbology!"

"No surprises there," Liza said, smiling. Neville had never been the most confident of wizards, but his skills in Herbology were wonderful. Neville dug around in his backpack and pulled out his exam results.

"Here," Neville said, letting Harry and Liza look at it. "I only failed Divination, History of Magic, and Potions. I can't believe I got an E in Defense Against the Dark Arts, though!"

"So what classes do you think you'll take?" Liza asked him, handing his exam results back.

"Herbology and Defense Against the Dark Arts for sure," Neville said. "Gran says I should take Transfiguration, but I don't know if McGonagall will let me with only an A…"

"What about Charms?" Liza questioned, having noticed that Neville had gotten an E on that exam as well.

"Gran says Charms is a soft subject," Neville replied.

"I know she's your gran, but that doesn't mean you need to do every little thing she tells you to," Liza said. "This is _your_ schooling, and if you want to take Charms, you should. I'm going to."

"What about you, Harry?" Neville asked. He and Liza looked at Harry, who was staring out the window. "You all right? You look funny."

"Sorry," Harry said, shaking his head slightly and returning his attention to the conversation. "I—"

"Wrackspurt got you?" Luna asked, looking at Harry as well.

"I—what?" Harry asked.

"A Wrackspurt… They're invisible. They float in through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy," Luna explained. "I thought I felt one zooming around in here." She waved her hands through the air, as though trying to shoo something away. Harry and Neville quickly changed the subject to Quidditch.

A few hours later, Ron and Hermione finally joined them.

"Wish the lunch trolley would hurry up, I'm starving," Ron said, dropping into the seat next to Harry. Hermione sat next to Liza. Ron rubbed his stomach and said, "Hi, Neville. Hi, Luna. Guess what? Malfoy's not doing prefect duty. He's just sitting in his compartment with the other Slytherins, we saw him when we passed."

"What did he do when he saw you?" Harry asked immediately, sitting up in his seat.

"The usual," Ron replied. He made a rude hand gesture in the air. "Not like him, though, is it? Well— _that_ is," he did the hand gesture again, "but why isn't he out there bullying first years?"

"Dunno," Harry said, his eyes a bit wider than normal.

"Maybe he preferred the Inquisitorial Squad," Liza suggested. "Maybe being a prefect seems a bit tame after that."

"I don't think so," Harry said. "I think he's—"

The compartment door opened and a nervous yet excited-looking third-year girl stepped into their compartment, holding three scrolls of parchment.

"I'm supposed to deliver these to Neville Longbottom, Liza Jones, and Harry P-Potter," she said, blushing as she looked at Harry. Harry, Neville, and Liza took the scrolls, and the girl scurried out of the compartment again.

"What is it?" Ron asked. Liza unrolled hers, and the boys did the same.

"An invitation," Harry said. Liza quickly read the parchment.

 _Liza,_

 _I would be delighted if you would join me for a bite of lunch in compartment C._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Professor H.E.F. Slughorn_

"Who's Professor Slughorn?" Neville asked.

"New teacher," Harry answered. "Well, I suppose we'll have to go, won't we?"

"But what does he want me for?" Neville questioned.

"No idea," Harry replied, as he stood up. "Listen," he continued suddenly, "let's go under the Invisibility Cloak, then we might get a good look at Malfoy on the way, see what he's up to."

"No," Liza said flatly. "I'm going to walk like a normal person, thank you. You can go spy on Malfoy by yourself." Harry frowned.

"Come on, Liza, please?" he asked.

"No," Liza replied firmly. "I'm sorry, but no. Come on, Neville." She exited the compartment with Neville right behind her. They walked down the train, getting stared at but not as badly as when Harry had been with them.

"Liza!" Slughorn said warmly when she and Neville had reached compartment C. "How wonderful to see you! And you must be Mr. Longbottom!" Neville nodded. "And where is Harry?" Slughorn asked Liza expectantly.

"He was briefly held up," Liza replied. "He should be along in a few moments." Slughorn nodded his approval, and then he gestured the the empty seats. Neville and Liza dropped into the chairs, looking around at the other guests. To Liza's surprise, Ginny was sitting in the corner, looking as confused as Neville had. Liza waved at her.

About a minute later, Harry appeared, and Slughorn beamed at him.

"Harry, m'boy!" he said. "Good to see you, good to see you! Have a seat, we're just about to eat." Harry sat in the last empty chair next to Neville.

"Now, do you know everyone?" Slughorn asked Harry, Neville, and Liza. "Blaise Zabini is in your year, of course—" Blaise was a Slytherin who was friendly with Malfoy, so he didn't greet the Gryffindors.

"This is Cormac McLaggen, perhaps you've come across each other—?" Slughorn pointed to the seventh-year Gryffindor. Liza gave Cormac a small smile, and he raised his hand in greeting.

"—and this is Marcus Belby, I don't know whether—?" Marcus, looking anxious, tried to smile.

"—and _this_ charming young lady tells me she knows you!" Slughorn said. Ginny made a face behind Slughorn's back, and Liza had to stifle a laugh.

"Well, now, this is most pleasant," Slughorn said. "A chance to get to know you all a little better. Here, take a napkin. I've packed my own lunch; the trolley, as I remember it, is heavy on licorice wands, and a poor old man's digestive system isn't quite up to such things… Pheasant, Belby?" Marcus jumped a little in his seat before accepting the plate Slughorn handed him.

"I was just telling young Marcus here that I had the pleasure of teaching his Uncle Damocles," Slughorn said, passing a basket of rolls around the table. "Outstanding wizard, outstanding, and his Order of Merlin most well-deserved. Do you see much of your uncle, Marcus?"

Marcus, who had just taken a bite of his food, tried to swallow quickly to answer Slughorn and ended up choking.

" _Anapneo_ ," Slughorn said, pointing his wand to Marcus's throat. Marcus coughed for a moment before finally looking up to answer.

"Not…not much of him, no," he said.

"Well, of course, I daresay he's busy," Slughorn said. "I doubt he invented the Wolfsbane Potion without considerable hard work!"

"I suppose…" Marcus replied, looking unsure of himself. "Er…he and my dad don't get on very well, you see, so I don't really know much about…" He stopped talking as Slughorn gave him a tight-lipped smile and turned to Cormac.

"Now, _you_ , Cormac," Slughorn said, "I happen to know you see a lot of your Uncle Tiberius, because he has a rather splendid picture of the two of you hunting nogtails in, I think, Norfolk?"

"Oh, yeah, that was fun, that was," Cormac replied. "We went with Bertie Higgs and Rufus Scrimgeour—this was before he became Minister, obviously—"

"Ah, you know Bertie and Rufus, too?" Slughorn asked excitedly. He handed around a plate of pies, skillfully skipping over Marcus. "Now tell me…" He and Cormac talked for a few minutes more before he moved on to Blaise. After him, Slughorn talked to Neville for a while, who was nervous and still a bit confused.

Then, he turned to Liza.

"And here we have Elizabeth Jones!" he said, smiling. "Do tell us, how did you manage to escape from your parents house with nobody's knowledge?" Liza knew the story by now, although she also knew that Slughorn was testing her like he'd done with everyone else so far.

"My parents went into hiding when my mother was pregnant," Liza stated. "Nobody knew she was pregnant with twins, and so for a whole year after we'd been born, only my parents, Dumbledore, and a handful of close friends knew that there were two babies.

"It was my mother who asked Dumbledore if there was anything they could do to protect their children," Liza continued. "Dumbledore knew that Voldemort," there were a few strong reactions to hearing the name, "was hunting down a family of three, therefore there was a strong chance they'd be able to save one of the children before he even found them.

"So Dumbledore contacted a family abroad, and I was adopted by an American couple," Liza finished. "It was just after my first birthday; September, I think."

"Well, well," Slughorn said, "your mother certainly was a smart one. So when did you find out that you were Harry's sister?"

"Third year," Liza answered. "I found out mostly by accident, and then Dumbledore told me."

"Why all the secrecy?" Slughorn asked before taking a sip of his drink.

"Dumbledore thought it was in the best interest of everyone involved," Liza answered simply. Slughorn smiled warmly at her.

"Well, I have heard nothing but good things about you since the truth came out," he said. Then he turned to Harry and continued, "And now, Harry Potter! _Where_ to begin? I feel I barely scratched the surface when we met over the summer! 'The Chosen One,' they're calling you now!" Harry said nothing as Slughorn scrutinized him.

"Of course, there have been rumors for years…" Slughorn went on. "I remember when—well—after that _terrible_ night—Lily—James—and you survived—and the word was that you must have powers beyond the ordinary—" Blaise coughed, but it was obvious that he was trying to cover a noise of disbelief.

"Yeah, Zabini, because _you're_ so talented… at posing…" Ginny said loudly from her corner.

"Oh dear!" Slughorn said lightly and with a laugh. He looked over at Ginny. "You want to be careful, Blaise! I saw this young lady perform the most marvelous Bat-Bogey Hex as I was passing her carriage! I wouldn't cross her!" Liza couldn't help the smile that she sent Ginny, who winked back when Slughorn turned away.

"Anyway," Slughorn said, looking back to Harry. " _Such_ rumors this summer. Of course, one doesn't know what to believe, the _Prophet_ has been known to print inaccuracies, make mistakes—but there seems little doubt, given the number of witnesses, that there was _quite_ a disturbance at the Ministry and that you were there in the thick of it all!" Harry nodded but didn't add anything to the conversation.

"So modest, so modest, no wonder Dumbledore is so fond—you _were_ there, then?" Slughorn asked gleefully. "But the rest of the stories—so sensational, of course, one doesn't know quite what to believe—this fabled prophecy, for instance—"

"We never heard a prophecy," Neville spoke up.

"That's right," Ginny added. "Neville, Liza, and I were all there too, and all this 'Chosen One' rubbish is just the _Prophet_ making things up as usual." Liza couldn't help glancing over to Harry. Their eyes met for a brief moment before looking back at Slughorn.

"You three were there too, were you?" Slughorn asked, looking between the three of them and smiling.

"Yes," Liza answered, but didn't elaborate. Neither Ginny nor Neville said anything, and Slughorn looked back at Harry after a few moments.

"Yes…well…it is true that the _Prophet_ often exaggerates, of course…" he went on. "I remember dear Gwenog telling me (Gwenog Jones, I mean, of course, Captain of the Holyhead Harpies)…"

Slughorn continued to tell stories of his old favorites throughout the afternoon. He had fondly called his group of students the "Slug Club" when he was first teaching at Hogwarts, and it couldn't be more obvious that he was planning on forming a new group of favorites when they got back to school.

"Good gracious, it's getting dark already!" he exclaimed after a while. "I didn't notice that they'd lit the lamps! You'd better go and change into your robes, all of you. McLaggen, you must drop by and borrow that book on nogtails. Harry, Blaise—any time you're passing. Same goes for you two ladies," he nodded to Ginny and then to Liza. "Well, off you go, off you go!"

As they exited into the corridor, Blaise bumped into Harry and glared at him. Liza rolled her eyes as she, Ginny, Neville, and Harry walked down the train, following Blaise.

"I'm glad that's over," Neville said quietly. "Strange man, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is a bit," Harry agreed.

"How come you ended up in there, Ginny?" Liza asked with interest.

"He saw me hex Zacharias Smith," Ginny answered. "You remember that idiot from Hufflepuff who was in the D.A.?" Liza groaned.

"I wish I could forget him," she said.

"Yes, well, he kept on and on asking about what happened at the Ministry," Ginny explained, "and in the end he annoyed me so much I hexed him—when Slughorn came in I thought I was going to get detention, but he just thought it was a really good hex and invited me to lunch! Mad, eh?"

"Better reason for inviting someone than because their mother's famous," Harry said, looking pointedly at the back of Blaise's head, "or because their uncle—" He stopped suddenly, both talking and walking.

"Harry?" Liza asked, looking back at his frozen form. He pulled his Invisibility Cloak out of his bag.

"I'll see you three later," he whispered, and he disappeared under his Cloak.

"But what're you—?" Neville started.

"Later!" Harry's voice interrupted with a hiss. Liza shook her head.

"C'mon, Neville, let's get going," she said. They walked passed a few more compartments, said goodbye to Ginny when she had reached hers, and a few minutes later entered their compartment to find Hermione, Ron, and Luna already in their school robes.

"Where's Harry?" Hermione asked immediately.

"Snooping," Liza replied.

"He's _what_?" Ron asked.

"I don't know," Liza replied. "He took his Invisibility Cloak and went off somewhere. I'm telling you, he's getting obsessed with Malfoy; it's weird."

"So how was your lunch?" Hermione asked after Neville and Liza had pulled their robes over their heads. "You were gone for a long time."

"It was all right," Liza replied. "He's very interested in people who have good connections."

"Like who?" Ron asked.

"Blaise Zabini was there," Liza said. "His mother's famous for something I can't really remember. Then there was Cormac McLaggen, his uncle is very important at the Ministry. Marcus Belby, he's a Ravenclaw, his uncle apparently invented the Wolfsbane Potion, but Slughorn didn't seem to like him very much because he doesn't actually _know_ his uncle very well. Then me, Harry, and Neville. Oh, and Ginny."

" _Ginny_?" Ron asked sitting up straight.

"Yeah," Liza said. "Apparently Slughorn walked by just as Ginny was hexing Zacharias Smith and was impressed."

"He spent most of the time talking about his past favorite students," Neville said. "He's a very strange man. I don't think he liked me very much." Liza shrugged, not knowing what to tell him to make him feel better.

About ten minutes later, the train pulled into Hogsmeade station. Ron and Hermione left the compartment to do their prefect duties. Neville, Liza, and Luna got off the train together and followed the rest of the students to the carriages that would take them up to the school.

Liza gasped when she saw something in front of the carriages. Large, dark creatures that looked like skeletal horses with wings were tethered to the carriages.

"So _that's_ what a thestral looks like!" she said, staring at the nearest one.

"Yeah," Neville said quietly. Liza frowned.

"But I saw Sirius die in June," she said. "How come I couldn't see them at the end of the year when we were leaving Hogwarts?"

"It's not enough to just see someone die," Luna spoke up. "You have to accept and understand it, as well. So it probably took you a little while to accept that he'd died." Liza looked at the thestrals for a moment longer before piling into a carriage with Neville, Luna, and a couple of third-year boys.

The ride up to the castle was short, and soon they had reached the giant oak front doors. When they got out of the carriage, Liza looked up at the school, smiling.

 _It's good to be home_ , she thought.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: I'm trying to kind of separate Liza from Harry, Ron and Hermione a bit more. They're still friends and whatnot, but I'm trying to get Liza to have a bit more of her own life. I'll need that for what I have planned for the next story. Also, for Neville's O.W.L. grades, I knew four of his grades (Charms, DADA, Herbology, and Transfiguration) but not the rest, so I just made them up.**_


	6. Chapter 6 Surprise Staffing Change

_**A/N: This is a REALLY short chapter, and I'm sorry for that. It's kind of one of those in between chapters, so I hope the next one ends up being a decent length.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 6 – Surprise Staffing Change**

Liza and Neville parted with Luna when they entered the Great Hall. They walked about halfway down the Gryffindor table before taking a seat. It felt weird to Liza that the Weasley twins weren't there.

"Liza!" Hermione and Ron were hurrying down the Hall towards Liza and Neville. They sat down on the opposite side of the table.

"Have you seen Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Not yet," Liza replied. "I'm sure he'll turn up, though. He always does."

Soon, all the students had entered the Great Hall and sat down at their House tables. Dumbledore stood from his seat.

"The Sorting will begin in a few minutes," he announced to the school. Then he returned to his chair.

"I'm really worried about Harry," Hermione said, looking listlessly around the Hall and drumming her fingers on the table.

"Oh, come on, Hermione," Ron said. "I'm sure he's fine."

A few minutes later, the doors to the Great Hall opened, and Professor McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor House, marched into the room. She was leading the new group of first years to be Sorted. When she reached the front of the room, she put the Sorting Hat onto its stool. After a few seconds of silence, the rip at the brim of the Hat opened, and it began to sing.

After the Hat had finished, Professor McGonagall gave the first years a brief instructions, and then they began to be Sorted.

"I wonder where Hagrid is," Hermione murmured as the Sorting continued. Liza looked up at the staff table and noticed that Hagrid was indeed missing.

"Come to think of it, I didn't hear him collecting the first years off the train this year," Liza said, frowning. "He is here, isn't he?"

A few minutes later, one of the back doors opened and Hagrid entered the Hall.

"Well, there's one missing person," Hermione said. "I can't believe that Harry is this late."

The Sorting went on. It took quite a while to get through the whole batch of first years, and by the time the ceremony had ended, Harry still hadn't shown up.

"Where is he?" Hermione asked as the dishes on the tables filled with food.

"I don't know," Liza said, looking around the room. She was beginning to get worried, as well. Ron shrugged.

"I know you're worried, Hermione, but there's nothing we can do about it this minute," he reasoned as he began to pile his plate with food. Hermione sighed, serving herself as well.

"But what could have happened to him?" Hermione asked. "You don't think he got hurt, do you?"

"Look, if he hasn't shown up by the end of the feast, we'll talk to McGonagall and Dumbledore," Liza said. Hermione nodded in acceptance, seeming placated for the time being.

Finally, towards the end of the main course, Harry walked swiftly into the Great Hall. He was practically running to the Gryffindor table, and he squeezed into a spot between Ron and Hermione.

"Where've you—blimey, what've you done to your face?" Ron asked. Liza gasped, noticing that there was blood all over him.

"Why, what's wrong with it?" Harry asked anxiously. He picked up a spoon and tried to look at his reflection.

"You're covered in blood!" Liza said.

"Come here—" Hermione said, pulling her wand out. " _Tergeo_!" Moving her wand over his face, she siphoned off the blood.

"Thanks," Harry said, running his hands over his face. "How's my nose looking?"

"Normal," Hermione reported. "Why shouldn't it? Harry, what happened? We've been terrified!"

"I'll tell you later," Harry promised. Neville, Ginny, Dean, and Seamus were all listening intently. Even the Gryffindor ghost, Nearly Headless Nick, stopped nearby.

"But—" Hermione protested.

"Not now, Hermione," Harry said. Then he reached for some food, but before he could get any, it disappeared. The desserts appeared next.

"You missed the Sorting, anyway," Liza said as everyone began to dish themselves up some desserts.

"Hat say anything interesting?" Harry asked.

"More of the same, really…" Hermione replied, "advising us all to unite in the face of our enemies, you know."

"Dumbledore mentioned Voldemort at all?" Harry questioned.

"Not yet, but he always saves his proper speech for after the feast, doesn't he?" Ron said around his pudding. "It can't be long now."

"Snape said Hagrid was late for the feast—" Harry began.

"You've seen Snape?" Ron cut in. "How come?"

"Bumped into him," Harry replied. Liza gave him a suspicious look.

"Hagrid was only a few minutes late," Hermione said. "Look, he's waving at you, Harry." Harry looked around to the staff table. Professor McGonagall, who was sitting next to Hagrid, gave the half-giant a disapproving look.

"So what did Professor Slughorn want?" Hermione asked. "Liza said he was collecting the people who had good connections…"

"He wanted to know what really happened at the Ministry," Harry said.

"Him and everyone else here," Hermione scoffed. "People were interrogating us about it on the train, weren't they, Ron?"

"Yeah," Ron said. "All wanting to know if you really are 'the Chosen One'—"

"There has been much talk on that very subject even amongst the ghosts," Nearly Headless Nick said. "I am considered something of a Potter authority; it is widely known that we are friendly. I have assured the spirit community that I will not pester you for information, however. 'Harry Potter knows that he can confide in me with complete confidence,' I told them. 'I would rather die than betray his trust.'"

"That's not saying much, seeing as you're already dead," Ron said. Liza rolled her eyes.

"Once again, you show all the sensitivity of a blunt axe," Nick said before drifting off. Ron shrugged, turning back to his dessert, only to have it vanish on him.

Dumbledore stood at the front of the room. The conversations around the Hall stopped immediately as everyone looked up at him.

"The very best of evenings to you!" he announced, spreading his arms out wide.

"What happened to his hand?" Hermione asked, her eyes zeroing in on Dumbledore's injured hand. There were murmurs throughout the Hall. Dumbledore smiled and shook his sleeve over his hand.

"Nothing to worry about," he said reassuringly. "Now…to our new students, welcome, to our old students, welcome back! Another year full of magical education awaits you…"

"His hand was like that when we saw him over the summer," Harry muttered to Ron and Hermione. "I thought he'd have cured it by now, though…or Madam Pomfrey would've done."

"It looks as if it's died," Hermione said, her nose wrinkled. "But there are some injuries you can't cure…old curses…and there are poisons without antidotes…"

"…and Mr. Filch, our caretaker," Dumbledore continued, "has asked me to say that there is a blanket ban on any joke items bought at the shop called Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes." Liza made another mental note to tell Fred and George about that.

"Those wishing to play for their House Quidditch teams should give their names to their Heads of House as usual," Dumbledore went on. "We are also looking for new Quidditch commentators, who should do likewise.

"We are pleased to welcome a new member of staff this year. Professor Slughorn," the professor in question stood up, "is a former colleague of mine who has agreed to resume his old post of Potions master."

"Potions?" Liza asked.

" _Potions_?" Harry repeated.

They could hear the word echoing around the Hall.

"Potions?" Ron and Hermione said at the same time.

"But you said—" Ron started.

"Professor Snape, meanwhile," Dumbledore said loudly over all the conversations that had broken out, "will be taking over the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.

"No!" Harry exclaimed quite loudly.

"Harry, shush!" Liza hissed at him, but many people nearby had turned to look at him. Harry continued to stare up at the staff table, looking horrified.

"But Harry, you said that Slughorn was going to be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts!" Hermione said.

"I thought he was!" Harry replied.

"Oh wow," Liza said as she thought back to what Dumbledore had said about Slughorn. "Dumbledore never said specifically that Slughorn was coming to teach Defense. But how were we supposed to know that Dumbledore would give Snape the job?"

"Well, there's one good thing," Harry said. "Snape'll be gone by the end of the year."

"What do you mean?" Ron asked.

"That job's jinxed," Harry said. "No one's lasted more than a year… Quirrell actually died doing it… Personally, I'm going to keep my fingers crossed for another death…"

"Harry!" Hermione scolded.

"He might just go back to teaching Potions at the end of the year," Ron said. "That Slughorn bloke might not want to stay long-term. Moody didn't."

They heard Dumbledore clearing his throat, and everyone turned back to the front of the Hall. He waited for a few seconds until he was sure he had full attention again.

"Now, as everybody in this Hall knows, Lord Voldemort and his followers are once more at large and gaining in strength," Dumbledore began. There was an uneasy silence throughout the Hall. "I cannot emphasize strongly enough how dangerous the present situation is, and how much care each of us at Hogwarts must take to ensure that we remain safe. The castle's magical fortifications have been strengthened over the summer, we are protected in new and more powerful ways, but we must still guard scrupulously against carelessness on the part of any student or member of staff. I urge you, therefore, to abide by any security restrictions that your teachers might impose upon you, however irksome you might find them—in particular, the rule that you are not to be out of bed after hours. I implore you, should you notice anything strange or suspicious within or outside the castle, to report it to a member of staff immediately. I trust you to conduct yourselves, always, with the utmost regard for your own and others' safety."

Dumbledore took a serious look around at the students before smiling warmly.

"But now, your beds await, as warm and comfortable as you could possibly wish, and I know that your top priority is to be well-rested for your lessons tomorrow. Let us therefore say good night. Pip pip!"

Liza sighed as most of the school stood to leave the Great Hall. Hermione jumped up to tend to the first years. Liza glanced across the Hall, and her eyes found a very specific person over at the Slytherin table. John was there, and Liza was surprised to see him sitting next to Malfoy and his normal gang of friends. The sixth-year Slytherins got up from their table, and they left the Hall as though they'd been best friends for years.

"What really happened to your nose?" Ron asked Harry. Liza tore her eyes away from John to concentrate on Ron and Harry. They slowly made their way out of the Great Hall.

"Well, I used the Invisibility Cloak to go into Malfoy's compartment to eavesdrop on him," Harry said heavily. "He must have seen me when I snuck inside. So when we got to Hogsmeade, he cast the Full Body-Bind on me and stomped on my nose."

"I saw Malfoy miming something to do with a nose," Ron said, looking upset for his friend.

"Yeah, well, never mind that," Harry said. "Listen to what he was saying before he found out I was there…"

Harry told them how he'd overheard Malfoy saying how he might not even be at school the next year, and that he kept talking about a "him". When Harry was finished with his story, he looked expectantly at Ron and Liza.

"Come on, Harry, he was just showing off for Parkinson," Ron said. "What kind of mission would You-Know-Who have given him?"

"How d'you know Voldemort doesn't need someone at Hogwarts? It wouldn't be the first time—" Harry said.

"I wish yeh'd stop sayin' tha' name, Harry." Hagrid had come down from the staff table.

"Dumbledore uses that name," Harry insisted.

"Yeah, well, tha's Dumbledore, innit?" Hagrid said. "So how come yeh were late, Harry? I was worried."

"Got held up on the train," Harry replied. "Why were _you_ late?"

"I was with Grawp," Hagrid answered. "Los' track o' the time. He's got a new home up in the mountains now, Dumbledore fixed it—nice big cave. He's much happier than he was in the forest. We were havin' a good chat."

"Really?" Liza asked.

"Oh yeah, he's really come on," Hagrid said. "Yeh'll be amazed. I'm thinkin' o' trainin' him up as me assistant." Ron sneezed, but Liza knew him well enough by now to know that he was trying to hide a laugh.

"Anyway, I'll see yeh tomorrow, firs' lesson's straight after lunch," Hagrid said. "Come early an' yeh can say hello ter Buck—I mean, Witherwings!" He waved at the three of them before heading out of the front doors.

Harry, Ron, and Liza exchanged worried looks.

"You're not taking Care of Magical Creatures, are you?" Harry asked Ron. Ron shook his head.

"And you're not either, are you?" Ron asked back. Harry shook his head.

"Liza?" Harry asked.

"Nope," Liza replied. "And Hermione, she's not, is she?" Harry shook his head once more. The three of them look wordlessly at each other for a few minutes before heading up to Gryffindor tower.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	7. Chapter 7 NEWT Classes

_**A/N: This chapter is much better length-wise.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 7 – N.E.W.T. Classes**

The next morning, Liza and Hermione dressed in their uniforms and robes and met Harry and Ron in the common room. Harry immediately told Hermione what he had overheard on the train the night before.

"But he was obviously showing off for Parkinson, wasn't he?" Ron said when Harry was finished.

"Well, I don't know…" Hermione said. "It would be like Malfoy to make himself seem more important than he is…but that's a big lie to tell…"

"Exactly," Harry said, but he couldn't continue. Everyone around them was trying to listen to their conversation, and the people who weren't as close were staring at Harry and whispering to their friends.

"It's rude to point," Ron said loudly to a first-year boy as they followed the line towards the portrait hole. The boy, who had been murmuring to his friend, immediately blushed and fell out of the hole. Ron laughed.

"I love being a sixth year," he said as they began the walk down to the Great Hall. " _And_ we're going to be getting free time this year. Whole periods when we can just sit up here and relax."

"We're going to need that time for studying, Ron!" Hermione insisted.

"Yeah, but not today," Ron said. "Today's going to be a real doss, I reckon."

"We'll see about that," Liza said.

"Hold it!" Hermione said, stopping a fourth-year who had been trying to get around them. "Fanged Frisbees are banned, hand it over." The boy handed her the Frisbee, scowling, and then ran off down the hall after his friends. When they were out of sight, Ron took the Frisbee from Hermione.

"Excellent, I've always wanted one of these," he said. Hermione and Liza opened their mouths at the same time, but they heard a loud laugh from behind them. Lavender Brown passed them with Parvati Patil, giggling and looking back over her shoulder at Ron.

"What the hell was that?" Liza asked when Lavender and Parvati were out of earshot.

"I dunno," Ron replied, although he looked mighty pleased with himself. Liza glanced at Hermione, who looked confused.

They entered the Great Hall to find the ceiling showing a bright blue sky with wisps of clouds floating along. Heading over to the Gryffindor table, they sat down and began their breakfast. Harry, Ron, and Liza told Hermione about the brief conversation they'd had with Hagrid the night before.

"But he can't really think we'd continue Care of Magical Creatures!" Hermione said in alarm when her friends had finished. "I mean, when has any of us expressed…you know…any enthusiasm?"

"That's it, though, innit?" Ron said. "We were the ones who made the most effort in classes because we like Hagrid. But he thinks we liked the stupid _subject_. D'you reckon anyone's going to go on to N.E.W.T.?"

"I'm sure some people might be interested," Liza said, shrugging. "It's not like we ever had classes with any of the Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs."

"Yeah, but you heard Luna last year," Harry said. "She said that their House thought that Hagrid's teaching was a bit of a joke."

Towards the end of breakfast, Professor McGonagall came down to the Gryffindor table to pass out the class schedules. After handing out the first through fifth year schedules, she came to the sixth years. It was more complicated for them, seeing as Professor McGonagall had to be sure they had achieved the appropriate O.W.L.s to continue to N.E.W.T. classes.

Lavender Brown and Seamus Finnigan were the first two cleared to head off to their classes. Hermione was next, and she was approved to take Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Herbology, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Potions. Since she had Ancient Runes right away, she left the table after a quick farewell to the others.

Liza was next, and Professor McGonagall looked over her exam results and Liza's application.

"Arithmancy, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Muggle Studies, and Transfiguration," Professor McGonagall read off. "Those will be just fine. Now, I know you said you hadn't expressed much interest in taking Potions, is that still the case?"

"Yes," Liza answered.

"All right," Professor McGonagall said, waving her wand over Liza's blank schedule. It filled in immediately. "There you are. Looks like you have a free period this morning."

"Thank you, Professor," Liza said, taking the schedule from her. She waited for Harry and Ron while Professor McGonagall continued through the sixth years. Neville was next.

"Herbology, fine," Professor McGonagall said. "Professor Sprout will be delighted to see you back with an 'Outstanding' O.W.L. And you qualify for Defense Against the Dark Arts with 'Exceeds Expectations.' But the problem is Transfiguration. I'm sorry, Longbottom, but an 'Acceptable' really isn't good enough to continue to N.E.W.T. level. I just don't think you'd be able to cope with the coursework." Neville looked downcast, and Professor McGonagall asked, "Why do you want to continue with Transfiguration, anyway? I've never had the impression that you particularly enjoyed it."

Neville muttered something quietly, and Liza could only make out the words, "my grandmother wants."

"Hmph," Professor McGonagall sniffed. "It's high time your grandmother learned to be proud of the grandson she's got, rather than the one she thinks she ought to have—particularly after what happened at the Ministry." Liza smiled as Neville blushed. Professor McGonagall continued briskly, "I'm sorry, Longbottom, but I cannot let you into my N.E.W.T. class. I see that you have an 'Exceeds Expectations' in Charms, however—why not try for a N.E.W.T. in Charms?"

"My grandmother thinks Charms is a soft option," Neville answered.

"Take Charms," Professor McGonagall said, "and I shall drop Augusta a line reminding her that just because she failed _her_ Charms O.W.L., the subject is not necessarily worthless." She smiled down on Neville before waving her wand over his schedule. She passed the parchment over to Neville, and then moved on to Parvati.

"Professor," Parvati asked at once, "will Firenze be teaching the sixth-year Divination class?"

"He and Professor Trelawney are dividing classes between them this year," Professor McGonagall answered. "The sixth year is being taken by Professor Trelawney." Parvati seemed unhappy about this, and a few minutes later accepted her new schedule before leaving for Divination.

Then, after Sally-Anne Perks was cleared for her classes, Professor McGonagall turned to Harry.

"So, Potter, Potter…" she began. "Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration…all fine. I must say, I was pleased with your Transfiguration mark, Potter, very pleased. Now, why haven't you applied to continue with Potions? I thought it was your ambition to become an Auror?"

"It was," Harry replied, "but you told me I had to get an 'Outstanding' in my O.W.L., Professor."

"And so you did when Professor Snape was teaching the subject," Professor McGonagall said. "Professor Slughorn, however, is perfectly happy to accept N.E.W.T. students with 'Exceeds Expectations' at O.W.L. Do you wish to proceed with Potions?"

"Yes," Harry said at once, "but I didn't buy the books or any ingredients or anything—"

"I'm sure Professor Slughorn will be able to lend you some," Professor McGonagall said, tapping Harry's schedule with her wand. "Very well, Potter, here is your schedule. Oh, by the way—twenty hopefuls have already put down their names for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. I shall pass the list to you in due course and you can fix up trials at your leisure." Harry nodded and joined Liza in waiting for Ron.

Professor McGonagall gave Dean Thomas his schedule before reaching Ron. Ron was soon cleared to do the same subjects as Harry, and then Liza, Harry, and Ron set off for the common room, since they all had a free period.

"Look," Ron said, brandishing his schedule, "we've got a free period now…and a free period after break…and after lunch… _excellent_!"

"You know that Hermione's right, don't you?" Liza said. "Once we get into the swing of things, you'll be using all your free periods to study."

"Yeah, yeah," Ron said, waving a hand dismissively. "Don't try and take my happiness away just yet."

In the common room, there were only a handful of other students. Katie Bell was one of them. She had been a Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team since Harry's first year.

"I thought you'd get that, well done," Katie said to him, noticing the Captain's badge Harry had pinned to his robes. "Tell me when you call trials!"

"Don't be stupid," Harry said, "you don't need to try out, I've watched you play for five years…"

"You mustn't start off like that," Katie advised. "For all you know, there's someone much better than me out there. Good teams have been ruined before now because Captains just kept playing the old faces, or letting in their friends…" Ron, looking a bit uneasy, took out the Frisbee Hermione had confiscated earlier that morning and began throwing it around the common room.

After their free period, Harry, Ron, and Liza went down to Defense Against the Dark Arts. There they met Hermione, who was already looking frazzled.

"We got so much homework for Runes," she reported. "A fifteen-inch essay, two translations, and I've got to read these by Wednesday!" She held up a couple of books.

"Shame," Ron said.

"You wait," Hermione shot back. "I bet Snape gives us loads." The classroom door opened, and Snape stepped into the hallway.

"Inside," he commanded. The class hurried into the room, which seemed much darker than it usually did. There were new pictures posted on the walls. Snape shut the door behind the last person.

"I have not asked you to take out your books," Snape said. Liza saw Hermione drop her book back into her bag. "I wish to speak to you, and I want your fullest attention." He stood behind his desk at the front of the room, looking around at the students.

"You have had five teachers in this subject so far, I believe," he began. "Naturally, these teacher will all have had their own methods and priorities. Given this confusion I am surprised so many of you scraped an O.W.L. in this subject. I shall be even more surprised if all of you manage to keep up with the N.E.W.T. work, which will be much more advanced." He stepped out from behind his desk and began to walk around the room.

"The Dark Arts," he continued, "are many, varied, ever-changing, and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible. Your defenses must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo. These pictures," he pointed to a few of them as he passed, "give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer, for instance, the Cruciatus Curse, feel the Dementor's Kiss, or provoke the aggression of the Inferius." He gestured to a different picture for each scenario.

"Has an Inferius been seen, then?" Parvati asked anxiously. "Is it definite, is he using them?"

"The Dark Lord has used Inferi in the past," Snape answered, "which means you would be well-advised to assume he might use them again. Now…" He moved back around to the front of the room. "You are, I believe, complete novices in the use of nonverbal spells. What is the advantage of a nonverbal spell?" Hermione was the only person to put her hand up, and Snape looked around the room for a moment before saying, "Very well—Miss Granger?"

"Your adversary has no warning about what kind of magic you're about to perform," Hermione answered, "which gives you a split-second advantage."

"An answer copied almost word for word from _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Six_ ," Snape sneered, "but correct in essentials. Yes, those who progress to using magic without shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spell-casting. Not all wizards can do this, of course; it is a question of concentration and mind power which some lack.

"You will now divide into pairs," Snape continued. "One partner will attempt to jinx the other _without speaking_. The other will attempt to repel the jinx _in equal silence_. Carry on."

Liza found herself partnered up with Sally-Anne, the fifth Gryffindor sixth-year girl who Liza didn't know very well even though they shared a dormitory together.

"So do you want to be the jinxer or the jinxee?" Liza asked.

"I guess I'll do the jinxing," Sally-Anne said. They lined up opposite each other and concentrated hard on trying not to say anything aloud. Many students were simply muttering or whispering their jinxes instead of doing them nonverbally. About ten minutes into the lesson, Hermione was able to successfully shield herself nonverbally from Neville's attempted Jelly-Legs Jinx. In any other class, the teacher would have probably awarded Hermione House points for her accomplishment, Snape simply ignored her.

"Pathetic, Weasley," Snape said eventually, catching the attention of those around Ron and Harry. "Here—let me show you—" He turned to face Harry, his wand out.

" _Protego_!" Harry shouted immediately, putting up a Shield Charm so powerful that it actually knocked Snape backwards. The rest of the class stopped what they were doing to see what the trouble was.

"Do you remember me telling you we are practicing _nonverbal_ spells, Potter?" Snape asked.

"Yes," Harry replied.

"Yes, _sir_ ," Snape corrected.

"There's no need to call me 'sir', Professor," Harry quipped. Liza felt her jaw drop slightly. Hermione gasped, along with some of the other students. Ron, Dean, and Seamus were trying to hold in their laughter.

"Detention, Saturday night, my office," Snape said. "I do not take cheek from anyone, Potter…not even ' _the Chosen One_.'"

When class ended, Liza joined Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the corridor.

"That was brilliant, Harry!" Ron congratulated.

"You really shouldn't have said it," Hermione disagreed. "What made you?"

"He tried to jinx me, in case you didn't notice!" Harry replied. "I had enough of that during those Occlumency lessons! Why doesn't he use another guinea pig for a change? What's Dumbledore playing at, anyway, letting him teach Defense? Did you hear him talking about the Dark Arts? He loves them! All that _unfixed, indestructible_ stuff—"

"Well, I thought he sounded a bit like you," Hermione said.

"Like _me_?" Harry repeated incredulously.

"Yes, when you were telling us what it's like to face Voldemort," Hermione explained. "You said it wasn't just memorizing a bunch of spells, you said it was just you and your brain and your guts—well, wasn't that what Snape was saying? That it really comes down to being brave and quick-thinking?"

There was silence while Harry pondered what Hermione had said.

"Harry! Liza!" a voice called from behind them. Harry and Liza stopped and turned around. Jack Sloper, who had been a Beater on the Gryffindor Quidditch team the year before, was running towards them. When he'd caught up, he handed them each a roll of parchment.

"For you," he said. Then, looking at Harry, he went on, "Listen, I heard you're the new Captain. When're you holding trials?"

"I'm not sure yet," Harry said. "I'll let you know."

Meanwhile, Liza looked at her scroll, noticing the writing on the outside of it. She headed back towards Ron and Hermione, leaving Harry with Jack. She unrolled the scroll as she walked and was surprised to find a note from Dumbledore.

 _Dear Liza,_

 _I would like to start your Occlumency lessons this Saturday. Please come to my office after lunch, about 2 P.M. I hope your first day of school is going well._

 _Yours,_

 _Albus Dumbledore_

 _P.S. I enjoy Acid Pops._

"Is yours from Dumbledore, too?" Liza asked as Harry as he caught up with the other three.

"Yeah," Harry replied, quickly scanning the letter. Ron read it over his shoulder.

"He enjoys Acid Pops?" Ron asked.

"It's the password to get past the gargoyle outside his study," Harry explained in a quiet voice. "Ha! Snape's not going to be pleased… I won't be able to do his detention!"

"What does your note say, Liza?" Hermione asked as they set off again.

"Dumbledore wants me to come to his office Saturday afternoon to start Occlumency lessons," Liza replied.

For the rest of break, they speculated about what Harry's lesson would entail. Ron was betting that it would be magic so advanced that not even the Death Eaters would know about it. Hermione told him that magic like that would be illegal and that Dumbledore was probably going to teach Harry advanced Defensive spells.

After break, Liza and Hermione went to their first Arithmancy class. On the way up to the room, Hermione glanced over at Liza a few times with a cautious look in her eye.

"Okay, 'Mione, what's on your mind?" Liza asked eventually.

"I saw that John is in our Defense Against the Dark Arts class," Hermione said conversationally. Liza nodded; she had seen him, too, but she had tried very hard not to look at him sitting with the other Slytherins. "He seems to be really close with Malfoy and his friends lately."

"Yeah, I noticed it after the feast last night," Liza said.

After a few seconds of silence, Hermione asked, "Are you feeling okay about it?" Liza shrugged.

"I'm surprised," she admitted. "Not once in the past five years has he ever shown interest in hanging around with Malfoy's little gang, not to mention the fact that he's always been a decent person, so why is he spending time with them all of a sudden?"

"You miss him," Hermione said, almost sounding satisfied.

"Of course I miss him," Liza answered, not ashamed in the slightest. "He was one of my best friends, and I didn't want to break up with him."

"I still don't understand why you did," Hermione cut in. They had reached the classroom and were standing outside it as they finished their conversation.

"It's because I felt guilty that I could possibly be putting him in danger," Liza replied simply. "C'mon, we're going to be late." Hermione, who looked like she wanted to say more, grudgingly agreed and they entered the room.

One hour of Arithmancy later, Liza and Hermione headed for the Great Hall for lunch. After that, Harry, Ron, and Hermione trooped back up to the common room to work on some of their homework during their break while Liza went off to Muggle Studies.

There were only a handful of students in Muggle Studies. There were no Slytherins, Liza noted, but she ran, once again, into Sally-Anne Perks. She was the only other Gryffindor in the class. Hannah Abbott and Ernie Macmillan, both from Hufflepuff, were also in the class. There were also two other Hufflepuffs: a boy named Oliver and a girl named Megan. Three Ravenclaws were also in the room: a girl named Mandy, a boy named Stephen, and a girl named Isobel.

Professor Burbage entered the room a few minutes after the rest of the class had gotten settled. She hurried to the front and smiled at them all.

"Good afternoon," she greeted. "Not a very big class, but I'm glad you all decided to stick with it." She started the lecture for the day, letting them go at the end of the hour with an essay for homework.

"So where are you headed?" Sally-Anne asked Liza, surprising her. Liza quickly consulted her schedule.

"Looks like I'm finished for the day, actually," she said. "So I guess I'm headed back to the common room. I'll probably get a head start on all this homework. You?"

"I was thinking about going to the library," Sally-Anne answered. "You can come with, if you'd like."

"You know what, that sounds like a good idea," Liza said. "Sure, I'll go to the library with you."

The girls walked in silence for a while.

"So what other classes are you taking?" Liza asked as they climbed a set of stairs.

"Charms, Defense, Transfiguration, and Muggle Studies," Sally-Anne answered. "Oh, and Divination."

"Divination, huh?" Liza repeated. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione used to tell me how terrible that class was. But do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's all right," Sally-Anne replied. "I mean, it's obvious that Trelawney is pretty much a fraud, but the textbook is interesting enough."

They reached the library and found an empty table that they could spread all their work across.

"Wow, you're in Arithmancy?" Sally-Anne asked when Liza took her book out. "I've heard that's really hard."

"It's not too bad," Liza said, "but I can see why not everyone would like it."

"So what classes are _you_ taking?" Sally-Anne questioned. She pulled her feet out of her shoes and folded her legs underneath her.

"Arithmancy, Charms, Defense, Herbology, Muggle Studies, and Transfiguration," Liza answered.

"So I'm guessing you weren't a very big fan of Potions, either," Sally-Anny said, smiling slightly.

"No, not really," Liza answered. "I was getting mostly A's with Snape teaching; I have no idea how I managed to get an E on my O.W.L. Professor McGonagall told me I could still take it if I wanted to."

"Yeah, McGonagall told me I could take it, too," Sally-Anne said. "But I always found Potions not enjoyable, it doesn't matter who's teaching it now."

"Agreed," Liza said, smiling. Madam Pince, the normally cranky librarian, walked passed them and shushed them. Sally-Anne made a face behind her back as she moved away, and Liza threw a hand over her mouth to stifle her snigger.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

A few hours later, Liza and Sally-Anne went down to the Great Hall for dinner. Sally-Anne joined her other friends, and Liza found Harry, Ron, and Hermione sitting in the middle of the table, a bit secluded from their other housemates.

"Hi," Liza said as she sat down next to Ron. "How was Potions?"

"Pretty good," Harry answered. "I won this." He handed over a small vial for Liza to look at. "It's called Felix Felicis, or liquid luck. I made the best Draught of Living Death in the class." Liza frowned.

"Okay, no offense, Harry, but since when have you been the top of the class in Potions?" Liza asked. "Who all was there?"

"There were only twelve of us," Hermione said. "Michael Corner, Terry Boot, Padma Patil, and Liza Turpin from Ravenclaw; Malfoy, Zabini, Nott, and John from Slytherin; and then the three of us and Ernie." She turned to Harry and asked, "So how did you do it?"

"Well, it was this book," Harry said, producing his Potions textbook. "It has notes written in the margins from whoever it used to belong to. There were…alterations to the directions written in, so I just tried following them instead. I s'pose you think I cheated?" he asked Hermione.

"Well, it wasn't exactly your own work, was it?" Hermione pointed out.

"He only followed different instructions to ours," Ron said evenly. "Could've been a catastrophe, couldn't it? But he took a risk and it paid off." He sighed and continued, "Slughorn could've handed me that book, but no, I get the one no one's ever written on. _Puked_ on, by the look of page fifty-two, but—"

"Hang on." Liza looked up to see Ginny standing behind Harry, looking furious. "Did I hear right? You've been taking orders from something someone wrote in a book, Harry?"

"It's nothing," Harry said. "It's not like, you know, Riddle's diary. It's just an old textbook someone's scribbled on."

"But you're doing what it says?" Ginny demanded.

"I just tried a few of the tips written in the margins, honestly, Ginny, there's nothing funny—" Harry said hastily.

"Ginny's got a point," Hermione interrupted. "We ought to check that there's nothing odd about it. I mean, all these funny instructions, who knows?"

"Hey!" Harry exclaimed as Hermione tugged the book out of his hand.

" _Specialis Revelio_!" she said, tapping the cover with her wand. Nothing happened, and Hermione frowned.

"Finished?" Harry asked. "Or d'you want to wait and see if it does a few backflips?"

"It seems all right," Hermione said. "I mean, it really does seem to be…just a textbook."

"Good. Then I'll have it back," Harry said, swiping the book back, which slipped through his fingers and landed on the floor. Cursing under his breath, Harry bent over to retrieve it.

After dinner, Liza was following Hermione from the Great Hall when she bumped into John. She felt her eyes widen as their gazes locked. Liza froze, as did John.

"Er—" Hermione said, sounding unsure of what to do.

"I'll catch up with you in a minute," Liza said without looking at her.

"Okay…" Hermione said before slowly heading off.

John gave her a small smile.

"Hi," he said.

"Hi," Liza returned.

"So how was your summer?" John asked.

"Good," Liza said. "My parents temporarily moved to Britain. I spent most of my time with the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione, as usual. How was yours?"

"It was all right," John said. "Just hung around at home." Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Blaise, and Pansy walked passed, heading for the dungeons, and they all gave John a nod in greeting.

"I see you made some new friends," Liza said bluntly, unable to help herself.

"I guess," John said, shrugging. "I spent some time with them during the summer since our parents got together so often." He didn't explain anything more than that, but Liza knew that most of the parents of the Slytherins in Malfoy's group were Death Eaters.

John and Liza looked at each other for a moment longer. Liza wasn't sure what else to say to him.

"I guess I should head back up to my common room then," Liza said. "Don't want to keep Hermione waiting too long."

"I suppose," John said. He looked around the Entrance Hall, and Liza glanced around as well. It was basically deserted. Then, suddenly, Liza was being pulled into a massive hug. Startled, she stiffened for a moment.

"John—" she gasped.

"I missed you," John murmured into her hair. "And unless you stop me, I'm going to snog you because Merlin I missed doing that, too."

"I—okay," Liza said, surprising herself. Then John kissed her hard on the mouth. Liza put both her hands into his hair, keeping his face secured to hers, as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to him.

They stayed wrapped around each other for only a few seconds, but it felt like much longer. Finally, Liza broke away from him, breathing hard. He had never kissed her like that before.

"Wow," she murmured.

"Yeah," John agreed. Liza looked up at him.

"I need to get back to my common room," she said. "I'll see you later."

"Wait, Liza—"

"I'm sorry, but I need to go," Liza said firmly. She looked at him once more before turning and hurrying up the stairs.

She couldn't believe that had just happened. She had broken up with him to keep him safe, and now she was kissing him in the middle of the Entrance Hall where anyone could have seen them? _Stupid, stupid_ , Liza thought to herself. She shook her head to clear it and continued up to Gryffindor tower, promising herself to not let something like that happen again.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: I was not planning on having all of that go down between Liza and John, but it just sort of happened. Whoops. Heh.**_


	8. Chapter 8 First Meeting with Dumbledore

_**A/N: This chapter is a little short. Oh well!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 8 – First Meeting with Dumbledore**

The rest of the week passed pretty quickly and with plenty of homework. Finally, Saturday arrived, and at two p.m. Liza went to Professor Dumbledore's office.

"Acid Pops," she said to the stone gargoyle that protected the Head's office. The gargoyle sprang to one side, and Liza stepped onto the moving steps behind it. She rode the stairs up to another door, where she knocked and waited for permission to step inside.

"Enter," Dumbledore's voice called. Liza went into the office, smiling at the headmaster as she shut the door behind her.

"Good afternoon, Liza," Dumbledore said pleasantly from behind his desk.

"Good afternoon, Professor," Liza answered. Dumbledore gestured to the chair opposite him, and she went to it.

"I hope your first week of school has been well?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, sir," Liza replied.

"Good, good," Dumbledore said. "Let's get down to business, then. We are going to begin with Occlumency. I'm not sure of how much you know about Occlumency?"

"Not much," Liza said. "Harry was not exactly keen to talk about his experiences with it."

"Well, Occlumency is a way to shield your mind from someone practicing Legilimency," Dumbledore began. "Legilimency is used by someone to enter the mind of another. Once a Legilimens enters the mind of another person, they will be able to see their memories and emotions."

"So it's kind of like…mind-reading," Liza said.

"Somewhat," Dumbledore replied. "The mind is much more complicated than a book that you just pick up and read. The mind is comprised of many layers, but it is able to be protected with Occlumency, which is what you're here to learn."

"So Occlumency can protect my mind from being invaded," Liza said.

"Correct," Dumbledore said. "Since your identity is now known by the Wizarding world, there is always a risk that Voldemort will try to use you to get to Harry. Learning to close your mind will give Voldemort—or anyone else trying to invade your mind—less information to control you.

"Now—you are not connected to Voldemort's mind in the same way as Harry is, as you well know," Dumbledore went on. "However, he is an accomplished Legilimens all the same. Unless you master Occlumency, he will be able to penetrate your mind. This is one of the reasons why I think it is essential that you learn Occlumency."

"I understand," Liza said, nodding.

"This is a very difficult skill to learn," Dumbledore warned her. "One needs to be able to suppress their feelings, their emotions, to concentrate on closing their mind. Are you ready to begin?"

"I think so," Liza said. "Er—how do we start?"

"Close your eyes," Dumbledore instructed. "I am going to penetrate your mind—just a little—so that you know what it feels like. _Legilimens_!"

It was a weird feeling. All of a sudden, Liza was reliving one of her memories as a child. She was running after her mother, begging her to buy her some kind of candy. Then, after a few seconds, Liza found herself back in the chair in front of Dumbledore's desk. She blinked a few times before looking up at the headmaster.

"I hope you can forgive me," he said apologetically. "I tried to find the first memory that I thought you wouldn't mind that I saw."

"That's okay," Liza said. "It felt a bit weird though."

"Yes, that's how a lot of people feel," Dumbledore replied, giving her a small smile. "But I think it is important that you know what it does feel like."

"So how do I stop something like that from happening?" Liza asked, feeling determined.

"There are many different ways that witches and wizards have master Occlumency," Dumbledore said, "but it all comes down to strength of mind. Some people imagine putting up mental walls or blocks, while others simply layer the unimportant memories on top so that a Legilimens can't find what they're searching for before the person can cast them from their mind.

"It is also important to clear your mind," Dumbledore continued. "If your mind is distracted in any way, it will be much more difficult to protect it. Concentration is key. Do you have any questions so far?"

"Yeah," Liza said, realizing something. "I've just thought of something—Harry was the only person in our Defense Against the Dark Arts class who was able to throw off the Imperius Curse, which I'm assuming takes a very strong mind. Yet for some reason, he couldn't master Occlumency. Why is that?"

"There are a number of elements that made it difficult for Harry to master Occlumency," Dumbledore said. "I have already admitted, as I'm sure you remember, that I shouldn't have had Professor Snape teach him, and that I should have taught him myself. The enmity that Harry and Professor Snape feel towards each other was much more of a hindrance than I originally thought it would be."

"I suppose it also didn't help that Harry was so emotional last year," Liza said, frowning.

"Yes," Dumbledore agreed. "For people who wear their emotions on their sleeves—like Harry—it requires much more concentration to master Occlumency."

"So I have to shield both my memories and my emotions," Liza said thoughtfully. "And I can do it however I want?"

"It is your mind," Dumbledore said. "You must do whatever you feel necessary to protect yourself."

"How do we practice, then?" Liza asked.

"To begin with, I want you to work on protecting your mind," Dumbledore said. "I am not going to attempt to invade your mind again until you are ready to see if your protections work."

"Oh," Liza said, surprised. "But—when Harry was working with Snape—"

" _Professor_ Snape," Dumbledore corrected gently.

"Yes, Professor Snape," Liza said. "When Harry was working with Professor Snape, he wasn't given a chance to do anything like that."

"Yes," Dumbledore said heavily. "Another regret I have about letting Professor Snape teach Harry. Professor Snape believed that it would be better to teach Harry by throwing him headfirst into Occlumency. I disagree with this approach. Therefore, I want to give you some time to build up your mental barriers. If you have them always prepared, you will never be surprised with an invasion of the mind."

"Okay," Liza said, nodding her understanding.

"Therefore, every night before you go to sleep, I want you to work on building up your mental barriers," Dumbledore instructed. "You may do it any way you wish."

"Yes, sir," Liza said. "Er—does that mean we're finished for the day?"

"Yes, this will be all for now," Dumbledore said. "I will let you know when we will be able to meet again. Our meetings will probably be sporadic, so I hope that you will concentrate on protecting your mind. After you complete your schoolwork, of course." He smiled at Liza, who grinned back.

"Sure thing, Professor," she said. "Thank you."

"Goodbye, Liza," Dumbledore said.

"Goodbye, Professor," Liza replied. She stood from her chair and left the office.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

"Back already?" Hermione asked when Liza entered the common room. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting in front of the fire, working on their homework.

"Yeah," Liza said.

"Dumbledore must be a better teacher than Snape," Harry commented.

"Dumbledore is just teaching me differently than Snape taught you," Liza said. "He wants me to work on putting up mental barriers before he tests them."

"I wish Snape had let me do that," Harry mumbled. Liza shrugged.

For the rest of the afternoon, Liza worked on homework with her friends. As she watched Hermione, Harry, and Ron work on their Potions homework, she was glad that she hadn't continued on with that class.

After dinner, Hermione, Ron, and Liza all went back to work on their essay for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Harry, who was due to meet with Dumbledore soon, was telling Ron about the things he had found in his Potions textbook, including that it seemed like the Half-Blood Prince—the original owner of the book—had written down some spells that he had made up himself.

"Or herself," Hermione said, looking up from the essay she had been working on. "It might have been a girl. I think the handwriting looks more like a girl's than a boy's."

"The Half-Blood _Prince_ he was called," Harry pointed out. "How many girls have been Princes?" Hermione made a face at him and shifted her essay away from Ron, who had been looking at it.

"It's five to eight," Harry observed, checking his watch. He put his Potions book back into his bag and stood up. "I'd better go, I'll be late for Dumbledore."

"Ooooh!" Hermione said. "Good luck! We'll wait up, we want to hear what he teaches you!"

"Hope it goes okay," Ron added.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Liza said. Harry smiled at them, and they all watched as he climbed out of the portrait hole.

"Hermione, can't I just look at your essay—?" Ron begged.

"No, Ronald," Hermione sighed. "Just read your book, all the answers are in there."

"It's not fair," Ron grumbled, dragging his book closer to him. "I can't believe Dumbledore gave the Defense job to Snape."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now, so it would be nice if you would stop complaining about it," Liza said, finishing the last sentence of her essay. "There! Done." She smiled at Ron, who scowled back at her.

"Hey, Liza." Sally-Anne had just entered the common room.

"Hi, Sally-Anne," Liza said, smiling. Ever since they had gone to the library together, Liza had been spending more time with Sally-Anne. They had bonded over Muggle Studies, and they would go to the library together after class to work on homework.

"I was just wondering if you've done the essay for Muggle Studies yet," Sally-Anne said.

"Not yet," Liza replied.

"Do you want to work on it together tomorrow?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Yeah, that would be fine with me," Liza agreed. Sally-Anne smiled and then left to sit with her other friends. The majority of her friends were seventh years.

"Since when do you and Sally-Anne hang out?" Ron asked.

"Since she's the only other Gryffindor in Muggle Studies with me," Liza replied. "We just got to talking on the first day. She's really nice, you know."

"I'm not saying she's not," Ron said quickly. "I just find it weird that all of a sudden she wants to spend time with you."

"What are you getting at, Ron?" Liza asked.

"Well…" Ron looked a little uneasy now. "What if she's just hanging out with you to get close to Harry or something?"

"What?" Liza asked flatly.

"Don't take this the wrong way," Ron said. "But now that everyone knows that you're Harry's sister, and they all think that Harry's the Chosen One, there are bound to be some people that will want to be your friend to get closer to Harry."

"Thanks, Ron," Liza said sarcastically, snapping her book shut. "It's good to know that you don't think I can have friends outside our normal group because everyone else just wants to get closer to Harry." She stood up. "I think I'll turn in early for the night. I'll talk to Harry tomorrow." Then she swept off to the girls' staircase.

When she reached her dormitory, she put her bag down and changed into her pajamas. Then, getting into bed, she remembered what Dumbledore had told her. She needed to clear her mind and start putting up barriers to protect herself from attack.

Closing her eyes, she took a few deep breaths to calm herself. She quickly pushed away the argument she'd just had with Ron. Dumbledore had told her that being emotional got in the way of mastering Occlumency, after all.

Liza began to picture walls in her mind, protecting her memories and emotions. She thought about how it might feel to have someone attempt to penetrate the walls and about how strong they would need to stand up against Voldemort.

She was unsure about what else she should do. It was hard to figure out if her mental barriers would work well without someone attempting to get through them. Maybe she would have to do some of her own research to find out how to make them as strong as possible.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning, Liza joined Harry alone for breakfast.

"So tell me all about what Dumbledore taught you last night," Liza prompted as they sat down in the Great Hall.

"Well, he's not exactly— _teaching_ me," Harry said. "He's decided that, now that I know about the prophecy, I need some information. Specifically about Voldemort."

"Huh," Liza said. "I suppose it's good to know as much about your enemy as possible."

"Right," Harry said, nodding. "Anyway, Dumbledore took me into his Pensieve, into the memory of someone called Bob Ogden."

"Who's Bob Ogden?" Liza asked.

"He worked for the Ministry," Harry said. "The memory starts with him traveling to a house owned by a man named Gaunt. He had a son named Morfin and a daughter named Merope, and at least the man and his son could speak Parseltongue. His daughter could definitely understand it, although she never spoke throughout the entire memory. You could tell that Gaunt thought being a Pureblood was superior and that Muggles and Muggleborns were scum."

"So what did this Ogden guy want?" Liza questioned.

"He'd come to see Morfin," Harry said. "Apparently they'd sent owls, but Gaunt didn't like to open his mail. Morfin had used magic in front of a Muggle. Anyway, Gaunt let Ogden into the house, were his daughter Merope was. Gaunt kept yelling at her to use magic. She dropped a pan on the floor and he kept telling her to use her wand to pick it up instead of using her hands. Said she was acting like a Muggle, picking it up without magic. He called her a Squib at one point, too."

"Someone give him the award for Father of the Year," Liza quipped darkly, shaking her head.

"Tell me about it," Harry said. "So Ogden was meant to bring Morfin into the Ministry for a hearing because he did magic in front of a Muggle; _on_ a Muggle, actually. Gaunt was angry, of course. He showed Ogden a ring that he was wearing, claiming that it belonged to the Peverell family and it had been passed down through their family for generations. Then he showed Ogden the necklace that his daughter was wearing; apparently it had belonged to Salazar Slytherin, and the Gaunts were the last of his descendents."

"Sounds like a serious case of Pureblood mania," Liza commented.

"So that's when it got very interesting," Harry continued. "A Muggle couple were taking some kind of carriage ride through the village, and the path went right past the Gaunts' house. That's when Morfin started teasing his sister that the Muggle boy on the carriage would never want her."

"Oh, that poor girl," Liza said. "Imagine wanting to get to know a Muggle when you live in a house like that."

"Yeah, her father wasn't pleased," Harry said. "In fact, he tried to attack her himself."

" _What_?" Liza screeched. Harry shushed her as a few heads turned in their direction. "Sorry," Liza whispered.

"Gaunt attacked his daughter, and Ogden used his wand to get Gaunt away from her," Harry went on. "Then Morfin tried to attack Ogden, and he just ran out of the house. And that's when Dumbledore and I left the Pensieve."

"That sounds like one wild ride," Liza commented.

"Dumbledore filled me in on what happened afterward," Harry said. "Ogden went back to the Ministry and got reinforcements. They arrested both Morfin and Gaunt. Morfin was sentenced to three years at Azkaban, and Gaunt only got six months. Then Dumbledore told me that Gaunt's first name was Marvolo."

"Marvolo?" Liza repeated. "I've heard that name before, haven't I?"

"Yes," Harry said, nodding. "Marvolo Gaunt was Voldemort's grandfather."

"Wow," Liza breathed, her eyes widening. "So Merope must have been his mother, since his father was a Muggle, right?"

"Right," Harry said. "Marvolo, Merope, and Morfin were the last of the Gaunt line. Dumbledore said that their family had dwindled because they kept marrying their cousins to keep the line pure, therefore the later generations were often unstable and violent."

"I'm not surprised," Liza muttered.

"A lot of the rest of the story is Dumbledore's guesswork," Harry said. "He says that Merope was probably able to regain control over her powers after her father and brother were sentenced to Azkaban. Then he thinks that she slipped a love potion to the Muggle she had been obsessed with, Tom Riddle Sr. Only a few months after that memory we saw, Merope and Tom ran away together and got married."

"You know, you never think that love potions are really that dangerous until you hear stories like this," Liza said.

"So six months later, when Marvolo was released from Azkaban, he returned home to find a note from his daughter, explaining what she had done," Harry continued. "He died shortly afterwards."

"What happened to Merope?" Liza asked. "Voldemort was an orphan, wasn't he? Or at least, he was brought up in an orphanage. Did she abandon him, or did she die, too?"

"According to Dumbledore, a few months after Tom supposedly ran away with Merope, he returned to the village," Harry said. "Said he'd been hoodwinked, which Dumbledore says that whatever Merope had used to enchant him had lifted. He had left her while she was pregnant."

"So why the sudden change?" Liza asked. "Did the love potion just stop working or something?"

"Dumbledore thinks that Merope probably stopped giving him the potion," Harry explained. "He thinks that either she thought that Tom Riddle Sr. would have fallen in love with her after being under the effects of the love potion for so long or that he would stay with her since she was going to have his child."

"But he didn't stay," Liza said sadly. "He left them."

"Left them and never tried to get in contact with his son," Harry said.

"That is so sad," Liza said. "So did Merope abandon Voldemort?"

"No, she died," Harry said. "I'm not sure how yet, but I'm guessing Dumbledore will tell me some other time. Also, Dumbledore says that we're not supposed to tell anyone else about what was in the memory."

"Of course," Liza agreed. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	9. Chapter 9 Quidditch Trials

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 9 – Quidditch Trials**

Throughout the next week, the sixth-years homework load increased, as it always did. The breaks that Ron was looking forward to were not spent relaxing at all. Liza was grateful for the breaks, however, because then she wasn't up at all hours of the night like the year before.

The classes were getting much tougher as well. Even Hermione had trouble keeping up sometimes. The sixth-years were now expected to perform nonverbal spells in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, and Charms. Liza was starting to get results with her nonverbal spells, mostly in Charms, but she wasn't consistent yet.

Since they had been so busy, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza hadn't been able to visit Hagrid. He had stopped showing up to the Great Hall for meals. Whenever Liza and her friends tried to greet him when they saw him in the halls, he pretended not to notice them. It was obvious that he was upset they hadn't taken his N.E.W.T. class.

"We've got to go and explain," Hermione said on the next Saturday morning over breakfast.

"We've got Quidditch tryouts this morning!" Ron said indignantly. " _And_ we're supposed to be practicing that Aguamenti Charm from Flitwick! Anyway, explain what? How are we going to tell him we hated his stupid subject?"

"We didn't hate it," Liza said, frowning.

"Speak for yourself, I haven't forgotten the skrewts," Ron said darkly. He turned to Hermione and went on, "And I'm telling you now, we've had a narrow escape. You didn't hear him going on about his gormless brother—we'd have been teaching Grawp how to tie his shoelaces if we'd stayed."

"I hate not talking to Hagrid," Hermione said, biting her lip.

"We'll go down after Quidditch," Harry said. "But trials might take all morning, the number of people who have applied. I dunno why the team's this popular all of a sudden."

"Oh, come on, Harry," Liza said, shaking her head. "It's not _Quidditch_ that's popular, it's you! You've never been more interesting."

"And, frankly, you've never been more fanciable," Hermione added. Ron choked on his food, and Hermione gave him a look of disgust before continuing, "Everyone knows you've been telling the truth now, don't they? The whole Wizarding world has had to admit that you were right about Voldemort being back and that you really have fought him twice in the last two years and escaped both times. And now they're calling you 'the Chosen One'—well, come on, can't you see why people are fascinated by you?"

" _And_ you've been through all that persecution from the Ministry when they were trying to make you seem like a liar," Liza said. "You can still see the marks on the back of your hand where that evil woman made you write with your own blood, but you stuck to your story anyway."

"You can still see where those brains got hold of me in the Ministry, look," Ron cut in, showing off his forearms.

"And it doesn't hurt that you've grown about a foot over the summer either," Hermione finished, ignoring Ron.

"I'm tall," Ron mumbled.

They were interrupted by the morning mail being delivered. The owls coming into the Great Hall were dripping rain over everyone's heads. There was a lot of mail coming through these days, since a lot of parents wanted to make sure their children knew their families were all right.

Among the owls that morning were Hedwig and Pigwidgeon, Ron's tiny owl that was given to him from Sirius. They were carrying identical square packages.

"Ha!" Harry said as he unwrapped the package. It was from Flourish and Blotts, carrying a brand new copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_.

"Oh good," Hermione said brightly. "Now you can give that graffitied copy back."

"Are you mad?" Harry asked. "I'm keeping it! Look, I've thought it out—" He pulled the borrowed Potions book out of his bag and pulled out his wand. " _Diffindo_!" he muttered, and the cover of the book fell off. Then Harry did the same thing with his new book, swapped the covers, and tapped them both, saying, " _Reparo_!" He grinned at his handiwork. "I'll give Slughorn back the new one, he can't complain, it cost nine Galleons."

Hermione looked as though she was about to say something when an owl dropped her copy of the _Daily Prophet_ in front of her. She picked up the paper and started to scan the front page.

"Anyone we know dead?" Ron asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"You need to stop asking it like that," Liza said, although she was as anxious as he was.

"No, but there have been more dementor attacks," Hermione reported. "And an arrest."

"Excellent, who?" Harry asked, looking eager.

"Stan Shunpike," Hermione replied.

"What?" Harry asked, surprised.

"' _Stanley Shunpike, conductor on the popular Wizarding conveyance the Knight Bus, has been arrested on suspicion of Death Eater activity. Mr. Shunpike, 21, we taken into custody late last night after a raid on his Clapham home…_ '" Hermione read aloud.

"Stan Shunpike, a Death Eater?" Harry repeated. "No way!"

"He might have been put under the Imperius Curse," Ron suggested. "You never can tell."

"It doesn't look like it," Hermione said, who had continued to read the article. "It says here he was arrested after he was overheard talking about the Death Eaters' secret plans in a pub." She looked up and said, "If he was under the Imperius Curse, he'd hardly stand around gossiping about their plans, would he?"

"It sounds like he was trying to make out he knew more than he did," Ron said. "Isn't he the one who claimed he was going to become Minister of Magic when he was ting to chat up those veela?"

"Yeah, that's him," Harry confirmed.

"When was this?" Liza asked.

"Two years ago, at the Quidditch World Cup," Ron replied. "When we were all in the woods hiding from the Death Eaters, and you were with Fred and George."

"I dunno what they're playing at, taking Stan seriously," Harry said, shaking his head.

"They probably want to look as though they're doing something," Hermione said. "People are terrified—you know the Patil twins' parents want them to go home? And Eloise Midgen has already been withdrawn. Her father picked her up last night."

"What!" Liza exclaimed.

"But Hogwarts is safer than their homes, bound to be!" Ron said. "We've got Aurors, and all those extra protective spells, and we've got Dumbledore!"

"I don't think we've got him all the time," Hermione said in a low voice. She looked up to the staff table. "Haven't you noticed? His seat's been empty as often as Hagrid's this past week."

Liza, Harry, and Ron looked up at the staff table, as well, where they saw that Dumbledore's chair was empty.

"I think he's left the school to do something with the Order," Hermione whispered. "I mean…it's all looking serious, isn't it?"

This was true. The day before, Hannah Abbott had been taken out of Herbology and told her mother had been found dead. Nobody had seen Hannah since.

"Hey, Liza," Sally-Anne, who was walking down the table, said. "What are you up to this morning?"

"I'm going down to the Quidditch pitch to watch the tryouts for the Gryffindor team," Liza replied. "Do you want to come with us?"

"Yeah," Sally-Anne agreed, smiling. "I'll meet you down there, though, I need to get some breakfast first." She turned and went to join her other friends.

"You're okay with Sally-Anne sitting with us, right, Hermione?" Liza asked.

"Yes, of course," Hermione answered.

Five minutes later, Harry, Ron, Liza, and Hermione left the Great Hall. They passed Parvati and Lavender on their way out of the Hall. As they were walking by, Parvati nudged Lavender and pointed at Ron. Lavender turned around and smiled at him, who smiled back uncertainly. Hermione quickly looked away, and she didn't say anything on the walk down to the pitch.

"Good luck," Liza said to both Harry and Ron when they reached the field. Then she and Hermione went up into the stands to find somewhere to sit. As they sat down, Hermione started to fiddled with the end of a strand of her hair.

"Are you all right?" Liza asked, looking carefully at her friend.

"Yes," Hermione replied quickly. "Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, you don't seem very happy that Lavender smiled at Ron…" Liza pointed out. "Or that he smiled back at her."

"He is at perfect liberty to smile at whomever he likes," Hermione insisted.

A few minutes later, Sally-Anne joined them.

"Hey," she said, smiling at them. "Sorry it took me so long, Cormac insisted on third helpings of eggs." She plopped down onto the bench just below Liza and Hermione.

"Cormac?" Liza repeated. "Cormac McLaggen?"

"Yeah," Sally-Anne said. "I have no idea why I hang out with him. He dated my sister's best friend for a while, and for some reason that means that he's permanently part of our group. He can get a bit annoying, though."

"I'm not surprised," Hermione said. "He's always seemed like a bit of a womanizer, really."

"Really?" Liza asked. She had never really paid much attention to Cormac before.

"He goes through girls pretty quickly," Sally-Anne said. "I think he's dating a Hufflepuff fifth-year right now, but who knows how long that's going to last. Also he's a bit of a show-off…and he likes to talk about all the connections he has in the Ministry." She sighed.

"No wonder Slughorn was interested in him," Liza said, and Hermione nodded.

"Why is Slughorn interested in him?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Apparently Slughorn likes to collect the rich and famous," Liza replied. "Or, at least, the well connected. He has a little club for his favorite students called the Slug Club."

"The more I hear about Slughorn the happier I am that I didn't take Potions," Sally-Anne said. "Anyways, Cormac's trying out for Keeper today."

"So is Ron," Liza said. She paused and then asked, "Wait, if Cormac is a Keeper, where was he last year?" Sally-Anne rolled her eyes.

"Merlin," she said, "I'd nearly forgotten about that. Andrew Cleveley bet him to eat a pound of doxy eggs right before the trials were held last year. He was in the hospital wing for like four days."

Finally, the people who were trying out started to file out onto the field. Harry joined them. He began directing them to fly around the pitch, just to see which of them would be able to do so.

The first group to fly was a group of first years, and none of them could stay on their brooms except for one boy, who promptly flew into one of the goalposts. The second group was all girls, who, when Harry blew his whistle, all fell over giggling. Harry sent them off the pitch, and they all gladly went, taking a seat in the stands. The third group didn't make it once around the field, the fourth group didn't even have any broomsticks, and the fifth group were all Hufflepuffs.

"If there's anyone else here who's not from Gryffindor, leave now, please!" Harry said loud enough for everyone in the stadium to hear. A couple of Ravenclaws ran off the field after this announcement.

"This is such a mess," Liza commented as Harry directed the next group to take their turn around the pitch. "First years aren't allowed on the team anyway, and why would people from other Houses show up?"

"Because Harry's 'the Chosen One'," Sally-Anne said, snorting.

Finally Harry was able to start the real tryouts. For the next two hours, he tried everyone who was interested in being a Chaser. There were a lot of arguments and temper tantrums, but Harry had announced his final choices: Katie Bell, Ginny Weasley, and Demelza Robins.

"No surprise about Ginny, huh?" Sally-Anne remarked as Harry began trying out the Beaters. "The Weasleys are such a Quidditch family. All of her brothers played, didn't they?"

"Percy didn't," Liza said, "and I'm not sure if Bill did, but the rest of them did. How do you think Ron's going to feel if he doesn't make the team?"

"Why wouldn't he make the team?" Hermione asked.

"There are six other people trying out for Keeper," Liza pointed out, gesturing to the small group waiting for their turn to try out.

"Cormac claims that he's really good," Sally-Anne added, watching as a couple of hopeful Beaters collided in midair. Liza and Hermione exchanged a worried look.

An hour later, Harry had finished with the Beaters. Then it was the Keepers' turn. The crowd in the stands had grown throughout the morning; nearly every Gryffindor was now present to watch the end of the tryouts.

The first five people trying out for Keeper only saved two goals each. Then Cormac was up. He saved the first four goals, but on the fifth one, he flew in the complete wrong direction. Liza thought she heard Hermione mumble something under her breath.

"Did you see that?" Sally-Anne, staring after Cormac. "What did he do that for, the bleeding idiot? The Quaffle went completely the other way! He looked like he was Confunded, didn't he?"

"Yeah, I suppose so," Liza said slowly. She glanced over at Hermione, whose face was tinged a bit pink.

Now it was Ron's turn to tryout. He got onto his broom and was about to take off when a voice yelled from the crowd, "Good luck!" Liza looked for the source of the voice and saw Lavender Brown, who was hiding behind her hands.

"That's twice now," Liza mumbled.

"What's twice now?" Sally-Anne asked, turning in her seat to look at Liza.

"That's twice that Lavender has tried to get Ron's attention," Liza said. "First time was this morning, she made it a point to smile at him. And now she's yelling 'good luck' at him in front of everyone… I think someone fancies Ron."

"Well, he's not bad-looking," Sally-Anne commented. "I can see why she'd like him." Liza looked over at Hermione again, who was determinedly looking away from her.

Meanwhile, Ron flew up to his spot in front of the goalposts. Liza crossed her fingers, and a few minutes later, Ron had blocked all five goals.

"Good job, Ron!" Liza shouted as Ron dismounted from his broom. Cormac McLaggen stormed away from Harry, looking upset, and the rest of the new Gryffindor team gathered around their Captain.

"Come on, let's go congratulate Ron," Hermione said. Others in the stands were beginning to leave, as well.

"I'm going to head back up to the castle," Sally- Anne said. "I'll see you later!"

"Bye!" Liza replied. Then she and Hermione went down onto the field.

"You did brilliantly, Ron!" Hermione said as they neared the team. Ron was grinning, obviously very pleased with himself.

"Listen, we need to set our first practice," Harry said, calling the team's attention back to him. "We'll meet on Thursday night, if that's all right for everyone else?" The team all agreed, and Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza set off for Hagrid's hut. Ron talked about his tryout during the entire walk there.

"I thought I was going to miss that fourth penalty," Ron said. "Tricky shot from Demelza, did you see, had a bit of spin on it—"

"Yes, yes, you were magnificent," Hermione agreed.

"I was better than that McLaggen anyway," Ron said. "Did you see him lumbering off in the wrong direction on his fifth? Looked like he'd been Confunded…"

"That's what Sally-Anne said," Liza said. "But it sounds like it's a good thing he's not on the team. Sally-Anne said that he ate a pound of doxy eggs on a bet last year."

"Yeah, he told me that, too," Harry said.

Ron shrugged and continued to talk about his successful goalkeeping.

They reached Hagrid's cabin a few minutes later, where they found Buckbeak tethered in the front garden.

"Buck—Witherwings!" Liza exclaimed, correcting herself mid-word. She hurried forward and threw her arms around the hippogriff's neck. Buckbeak had never made her bow to him, ever since she'd spent so much time with him to help him escape execution three years earlier.

"Oh dear," Hermione said. "He's still a bit scary, isn't he?"

"Come off it, you've ridden him, haven't you?" Ron asked.

"There's nothing scary about him," Liza said, stroking the feathers on Buckbeak's neck. "He's such a good boy." Harry stepped closer to Buckbeak and bowed low. Buckbeak returned the bow, and Harry approached him.

"How are you?" he murmured. "Missing him? But you're okay here with Hagrid, aren't you?"

"Of course he is," Liza said quietly.

"Oi!" a loud voice yelled. Liza and Harry looked around to see Hagrid walking around the side of his cabin. He was wearing an apron and carrying a sack of potatoes. His dog Fang gave a loud bark and ran forward to jump up and lick at Ron's ears.

"Git away from him! He'll have yer fingers—oh. It's yeh lot," Hagrid said, realizing who was standing with Buckbeak. He gazed at the four sixth-years for a moment before turning and going into his hut, slamming the door behind him.

"Oh dear!" Hermione moaned.

"Don't worry about it," Harry said. He strode over to the door of the hut. Liza gave Buckbeak one more pat on the neck before following her brother, who was knocking furiously.

"Hagrid!" Harry called. "Open up, we want to talk to you!" There was no reply, so Harry added, "If you don't open the door, we'll blast it open!" He pulled his wand out.

"Harry!" Liza said, grabbing his wrist. "You can't do that—!"

"Yeah, I can!" Harry said, pulling his arm out of her grasp. "Stand back—"

The door of the hut burst open. Hagrid was glaring at them, looking more like a giant than Liza had ever seen him look. She took a few steps back.

"I'm a teacher!" he yelled. "A teacher, Potter! How dare yeh threaten ter break down my door!"

"I'm sorry, _sir_ ," Harry said sarcastically, putting his wand away.

"Since when have yeh called me 'sir'?" Hagrid asked, blinking.

"Since when have you called me 'Potter'?" Harry shot back.

"Oh, very clever," Hagrid grumbled. "Very amusin'. That's me outsmarted, innit? All righ', come in then, yeh ungrateful little…" He continued to mumble under his breath, but he let the four of them enter his house. Hermione looked a bit scared, and Ron also seemed a bit alarmed. Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Liza sat down at Hagrid's kitchen table.

"Well?" Hagrid asked. "What's this? Feelin' sorry for me? Reckon I'm lonely or summat?"

"No," Harry said. "We wanted to see you."

"We've missed you!" Hermione added.

"Missed me, have yeh?" Hagrid grunted. "Yeah. Righ'." He finished brewing the tea and dropped four mugs onto the table in front of them. He also put out a plate of rock cakes, which Harry reached for immediately.

"Hagrid, we really wanted to carry on with Care of Magical Creatures, you know," Hermione began in a small voice. Hagrid gave a snort of disbelief as he sat down at the table and started to peel the potatoes he'd had in the sack.

"We did!" Hermione insisted. "But none of us could fit it into our schedules!"

"Yeah," Hagrid said. "Righ'."

Then, from behind them, they heard a funny noise. They all looked around to see a large barrel full of what looked like giant maggots. Hermione shrieked and Ron jumped up from the table, retreating away from the creatures.

"What are they, Hagrid?" Liza asked, feeling her nose wrinkle in disgust.

"Jus' giant grubs," Hagrid said.

"And they grow into…?" Ron prompted.

"They won' grow inter nuthin'," Hagrid replied. "I got 'em ter feed ter Aragog." There was a moment of silence before Hagrid suddenly burst into tears.

"Hagrid!" Hermione exclaimed. She shuffled around the table to put her arm around his shoulders. "What is it?"

"It's…him…" Hagrid sobbed. "It's…Aragog… I think he's dyin'… He got ill over the summer an' he's not gettin' better… I don' know what I'll do if he…if he… We've bin tergether so long…"

"Oh, Hagrid," Liza said as Hermione patted his shoulder. "Is there anything we can do?"

"I don' think there is, Liza," Hagrid replied. "See, the rest o' the tribe…Aragog's family…they're getting' a bit funny now he's ill…bit restive…"

"Yeah, I think we saw a bit of that side of them," Ron muttered.

"…I don' reckon it'd be safe fer anyone but me ter go near the colony at the mo'," Hagrid continued. "But thanks fer offerin'… It means a lot…"

The mood improved significantly after Hagrid calmed down.

"Ar, I always knew yeh'd find it hard ter squeeze me inter yer timetables," Hagrid said. "Even if yeh applied fer Time-Turners—"

"We couldn't have done," Hermione cut in. "We smashed the entire stock of Ministry Time-Turners when we were there last summer. It was in the _Daily Prophet_."

"Ar, well then," Hagrid sighed. "There's no way yeh could've done it… I'm sorry I've bin—yeh know—I've jus' bin worried abou' Aragog…an' I did wonder whether, if Professor Grubbly-Plank had bin teachin' yeh—"

The next several minutes was spent assuring Hagrid that Professor Grubbly-Plank would never be half the teacher Hagrid was. At the end of the afternoon, Hagrid waved them off as they headed back up to the castle, looking much more cheerful than he'd been earlier.

"I'm starving," Harry moaned as they hurried back up to the school. "And I've got that detention with Snape tonight, I haven't got much time for dinner…"

When they got up to the castle, they watched as Cormac McLaggen tried to enter the Great Hall. On his first try, he bounced off the doorframe. Ron, laughing a bit meanly, entered the room behind him. Hermione made to follow Ron, but Harry pulled her arm.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"If you ask me, McLaggen looks like he _was_ Confunded this morning," Harry said. "And he was standing right in front of where you were sitting." Hermione flushed.

"Oh, all right then, I did it," she said. "But you should have heard the things Sally-Anne was telling Liza and me about him. Anyway, he's got a nasty temper, you saw how he reacted when he didn't get in—you wouldn't have wanted someone like that on the team."

"No," Harry said. "No, I suppose that's true. But wasn't that dishonest, Hermione? I mean, you're a prefect, aren't you?"

"Oh, be quiet," Hermione said, crossing her arms over her chest. Harry chuckled.

"What are you three doing?" Ron asked, poking his head back out of the Great Hall.

"Nothing," Harry, Liza, and Hermione all said at the same time. They followed Ron into the Hall and towards the Gryffindor table when they were stopped by Slughorn.

"Harry, Harry, just the man I was hoping to see!" Slughorn said cheerfully. "I was hoping to catch you before dinner! What do you say to a spot of supper tonight in my rooms instead? We're having a little party, just a few rising stars, I've got McLaggen coming and Zabini, the charming Melinda Bobbin—I don't know whether you know her? Her family owns a large chain of apothecaries—and, of course, I hope very much that Miss Jones and Miss Granger will favor me by coming too." He gave both girls a little bow.

"I can't come, Professor," Harry said. "I've got a detention with Professor Snape."

"Oh dear!" Slughorn said. "Dear, dear, I was counting on you, Harry! Well, now, I'll just have to have a word with Severus and explain the situation. I'm sure I'll be able to persuade him to postpone your detention. Yes, I'll see you three later!" He turned and hurried away.

"He's got no chance of persuading Snape," Harry said. "This detention's already been postponed once; Snape did it for Dumbledore, but he won't do it for anyone else."

"Oh, I wish you could come," Hermione said. "Liza and I don't want to go by ourselves."

"I doubt you'll be alone, Ginny'll probably be invited," Ron said irritably. Slughorn had ignored Ron the entire time he'd talked to Harry, Hermione, and Liza, and Ron didn't seem to appreciate that.

When dinner was over, they went back up to the common room to find it crowded. They managed to snag an empty table. Ron sat down first, still glowering, followed by the other three. Hermione picked up a copy of the _Evening Prophet_ that someone had left sitting on a nearby chair.

"Anything new?" Harry asked.

"Not really…" Hermione said, looking through the paper. "Oh, look, your dad's in here, Ron—he's all right!" she assured him as Ron looked around in alarm. "It just says he's been to visit the Malfoy's house. ' _This second search of the Death Eater's residence does not seem to have yielded any results. Arthur Weasley of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects said that his team had been acting upon a confidential tip-off._ '"

"Yeah, mine!" Harry said. "I told him at King's Cross about Malfoy and that thing he was trying to get Borgin to fix! Well, if it's not at their house, he must have brought whatever it is to Hogwarts with him—"

"But how can he have done, Harry?" Hermione asked. "We were all searched when we arrived, weren't we?"

"Were you?" Harry said. "I wasn't!"

"Oh no, of course you weren't, I forgot you were late…" Hermione said. "Well, Filch ran over all of us with Secrecy Sensors when we got into the Entrance Hall. Any Dark object would have been found, I know for a fact Crabbe had a shrunken head confiscated. So you see, Malfoy can't have brought in anything dangerous!"

Harry paused for a moment before saying, "Someone's sent it to him by owl, then. His mother or someone."

"All the owls are being checked too," Liza said. "Filch told us so when he was jabbing those Secrecy Sensors everywhere he could reach." Harry frowned and looked over at Ron.

"Can you think of any way Malfoy—?" he began.

"Oh, drop it, Harry," Ron said.

"Listen, it's not my fault Slughorn invited Hermione, Liza, and me to his stupid party, neither of us wanted to go, you know!" Harry said.

"Well, as I'm not invited to any parties, I think I'll go to bed," Ron said. He stood up and left for the boys' dormitories.

"You think he'd be a bit happier since he made the team today," Liza commented, shaking her head.

"Harry?" a voice asked. Demelza, the new Gryffindor Chaser, appeared at their table. "I've got a message for you."

"From Professor Slughorn?" Harry asked.

"No…from Professor Snape," Demelza said. "He says you're to come to his office at half past eight tonight to do your detention—er—no matter how many party invitations you've received. And he wanted you to know you'll be sorting out rotten flobberworms from good ones, to use in Potions and—and he says there's no need to bring protective gloves."

"Right," Harry said. "Thanks a lot, Demelza."

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	10. Chapter 10 The Cursed Necklace

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 10 – The Cursed Necklace**

September progressed into October, and Slughorn had invited Liza, Harry, and Hermione to three more of his little dinners over the weeks. Liza and Hermione had gone to all of them, but Harry had always managed to come up with some excuse. Ron would spend a few hours brooding about being left out whenever these parties came around.

Liza had started to do some research in the library about Occlumency to help her build up her mental walls. She hadn't heard a thing from Dumbledore since their first lesson, but she was determined to do her best. So far, she had learned that compartmentalizing her memories and feelings was a tried and true method of Occlumency, so every night before she went to bed she would imagine putting her memories into different boxes, depending on who the memory involved. As much as having the extra time was helping, Liza wished that Dumbledore would contact her soon; she wanted to try her method out to see if she was moving in the right direction.

Throughout the weeks, Liza had continued to spend time with Sally-Anne. They studied together in the library most days, and sometimes they would have lunch together. In the first week of October, they ran into John on the way to the library.

"Hi," John said to Liza. They hadn't spoken much since the first day of classes. She had continued to see him spending time in class with Malfoy and the other sixth-year Slytherins, and she still didn't know what to make of that.

"Hi," Liza replied. They looked at each other for a few seconds; Liza didn't know what to say to him, so she finally added, "We're on our way to the library." John nodded.

"Well, I don't want to keep you from studying," he said. "I'll see you around." He gave both girls a little wave and walked passed them.

"Wow," Sally-Anne said as she and Liza continued on. "That wasn't awkward at all. What's up with you two anyway? Weren't you dating at one point?"

"Yes," Liza answered.

"So what happened? If you don't mind me asking, of course."

"Just some personal stuff," Liza replied. "It's not a big deal."

"If you say so," Sally-Anne said. "He's cute, though. Mind if I go for him?" Liza turned to her, wide-eyed and surprised that she would ask something like that. Sally-Anne broke out into loud laughter. "Oh, my goodness, I wasn't being serious. The look on your face was priceless, though. I'm sorry if that was crossing a line."

"No, no," Liza said quickly. "You just surprised me is all." _Although_ , Liza thought to herself as they entered the library, _I would definitely mind if you tried to go for him_.

Midway through October, a sign went up on the Gryffindor notice board. The first Hogsmeade trip of the year would be the next weekend.

"Thank Merlin," Liza said to Hermione. "I was worried they weren't going to let us out to Hogsmeade at all this year, what with everything that's been happening." About every other week, at least one more student was removed from Hogwarts by their worried parents. Accidents and the occasional death were still being reported by the _Prophet_ every day.

The morning of the trip dawned cold and stormy, which came of no surprise. The weather hadn't been nice in quite some time. Liza and Hermione made sure to dress appropriately, and they went down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

Ron and Harry joined them soon after, and Ron wasted no time in telling the girls about what had happened to him that morning. Harry had woken Ron up by levitating him into the air by his ankle while he'd still been asleep.

"…and then there was another flash of light and I landed on the bed again!" Ron finished, smiling widely. He started to serve himself breakfast. Liza couldn't help the giggle that escaped her, but Hermione didn't look amused in the slightest.

"Was this spell, by any chance, another one from that potion book of yours?" she asked Harry.

"Always jump to the worst conclusion, don't you?" Harry said accusingly.

"Was it?" Hermione demanded.

"Well…yeah, it was, but so what?" Harry asked defensively.

"So you just decided to try out an unknown, handwritten incantation and see what would happen?" Hermione questioned.

"Why does it matter if it's handwritten?" Harry shot back.

"Because it's probably not Ministry of Magic-approved," Hermione replied. Harry and Ron both rolled their eyes, and Hermione scowled, "And also because I'm starting to think this Prince character was a bit dodgy."

"It was just a laugh!" Ron insisted. "Just a laugh, Hermione, that's all!"

"Dangling people upside down by the ankle?" Hermione said. "Who puts their time and energy into making up spells like that?"

"Fred and George," Ron answered promptly, "it's their kind of thing. And, er—"

"My dad," Harry said suddenly. Liza, Ron, and Hermione looked at him.

"What?" Ron and Hermione asked.

"My dad used this spell," Harry said. "I—Lupin told me." He gave Liza a meaningful look, which she took to mean that he had told her about the time when their father had done such a thing. She thought back for a moment before remembering what Harry had seen in Snape's Pensieve the year before.

"Maybe your dad did use it, Harry," Hermione said, "but he's not the only one. We've seen a whole bunch of people use it, in case you've forgotten. Dangling people in the air. Making them float along, asleep, helpless." Liza had a quick flashback to the Quidditch World Cup, when the remaining Death Eaters had levitated a Muggle family around the campsite for fun.

"That was different," Ron insisted. "They were abusing it. Harry and his dad were just having a laugh. You don't like the Prince, Hermione, because he's better than you at Potions—"

"It's got nothing to do with that!" Hermione cried, although she flushed when she said it, so Liza assumed that it had a little to do with it. "I just think it's very irresponsible to start performing spells when you don't even know what they're for."

"She's got a point, you know," Liza said. "You could have seriously hurt someone."

"Look, I didn't even think I would be able to cast the spell," Harry said. "Besides, why would the Prince have written a spell that would hurt someone in his book?"

"I do wish you'd stop talking about 'the Prince' as if it's his title," Hermione said irritably, "I bet it's just a stupid nickname, and it doesn't seem as though he was a very nice person to me!"

"I don't see where you get that from," Harry argued. "If he'd been a budding Death Eater he wouldn't have been boasting about being a 'half-blood,' would he?"

"The Death Eaters can't all be pure-blood, there aren't enough pure-blood wizards left," Liza said, shrugging. "Most of them are probably half-bloods pretending to be pure."

"It's only Muggleborns they hate," Hermione added vehemently, "they'd be quite happy to let you, Ron, and Liza join up."

"There is no way they'd let me be a Death Eater!" Ron exclaimed. "My whole family are blood traitors! That's as bad as Muggleborns to Death Eaters!"

"Yeah, I don't think they'd let me be one, either," Liza said. "I'm friends with the Weasleys and the sister of Voldemort's sworn enemy and all that."

"And they'd love to have me," Harry added. "We'd be best pals if they didn't keep trying to do me in." Ron and Liza laughed at that, and even Hermione cracked a smile.

"Hey, Harry," Ginny said, on her way down the table, "I'm supposed to give you this." She handed Harry a scroll of parchment. "And there's one for you, too, Liza." Liza took the second scroll and opened it.

"Thanks, Ginny," Harry and Liza said together.

"It's Dumbledore's next lesson!" Harry said. "Monday evening!" He looked up at Ginny and asked, "Want to join us in Hogsmeade, Ginny?"

"I'm going with Dean—might see you there," Ginny replied. She grinned and waved before meeting up with Dean further along the table. Liza scanned over her parchment and groaned.

"Lucky you," she said to Harry. "My lesson isn't until Thursday."

When they had finished with breakfast, the four sixth-years joined the line in the Entrance Hall to leave the school. Filch was checking everyone to make sure they had permission to go, and he was also using his Secrecy Sensor on all of them.

"What does it matter if we're smuggling Dark stuff OUT?" Ron asked when they had reached the front doors. "Surely you ought to be checking what we bring back IN?" Filch poked him with the Sensor a few extra times for that, but soon they were setting off for Hogsmeade.

Unlike the usual October Hogsmeade trips, it was cold and windy. Liza and Hermione had their scarves pulled up over their faces as they walked along. Still, their noses and cheeks were soon numb with the cold, and by the time they reached the village, they were wondering whether they should have just stayed up at the castle.

"Oh no," Ron moaned, stopping suddenly in the middle of the road. He pointed ahead of them to where Zonko's Joke Shop stood; it was completely boarded up and silent.

"Well, that's too bad," Liza commented. "I wonder what happened?"

"C'mon," Harry said, looking past the former joke shop. "Honeydukes is open, let's stop in there." Hermione, Liza, and Ron quickly agreed, and they hurriedly entered the candy shop.

"Thank God," Ron said as the warm air washed over them. "Let's stay here all afternoon."

"Harry, m'boy!" a voice called. Slughorn joined them, a bag of crystallized pineapples in one arm. Ron immediately looked sour.

"Harry, that's three of my little suppers you've missed now!" Slughorn said, although he sounded quite cheerful. "It won't do, m'boy, I'm determined to have you! Miss Granger and Miss Jones love them, don't you?"

"Yes," Hermione answered, "they're really—"

"So why don't you come along, Harry?" Slughorn asked.

"Well, I've had Quidditch practice, Professor," Harry said, trying to sound innocent. Liza rolled her eyes at him, knowing full well that he'd been scheduling practices at the same time as Slughorn's parties.

"Well, I certainly expect you to win your first match after all this hard work!" Slughorn said. "But a little recreation never hurt anybody. Now, how about Monday night, you can't possibly want to practice in this weather…"

"I can't, Professor, I've got—er—an appointment with Professor Dumbledore that evening," Harry replied.

"Unlucky again!" Slughorn said. "Ah well…you can't evade me forever, Harry!" He gave them a cordial wave and left the shop.

"I can't believe you've wriggled out of another one," Hermione said.

"They're not that bad, really," Liza said. "I mean, the food is usually good. Some of the students who show up have a bit of an inflated ego, but it's pretty easy to tune them out."

"Yes, the last one was quite fun…" Hermione trailed off, noticing the look of disdain on Ron's face. "Oh, look—they've got deluxe sugar quills—those would last hours!" Harry and Liza joined in enthusiastically, attempting to help lift Ron's spirits. It wasn't working, however.

"Let's go to the Three Broomsticks," Harry suggested after a while. "It'll be warm."

So, after paying for their candy, they bundled up again and left for the popular pub. Like in Diagon Alley, there weren't many people on the street. Those who were around hurried about their business, keeping their heads down, although that could have also been because of the weather.

As they neared the Three Broomsticks, they saw two men standing outside. One was a tall, thin wizard that Liza recognized as the barman from the other village pub, the Hog's Head. He walked away, and the other, shorter man fumbled with what was in his hands.

"Mundungus!" Harry exclaimed. Mundungus Fletcher, who was a member of the Order of the Phoenix, dropped the suitcase he was carrying, which sprang open.

"Oh, 'ello, 'Arry," he said, trying to appear nonchalant. "Well, don't let me keep ya." He started scooping up the contents of his suitcase, obviously wanting to disappear.

"Are you selling this stuff?" Harry asked.

"Oh, well, gotta scrap a living," Mundungus said. "Gimme that!" Ron had picked up silver goblet off the ground, looking at it closely.

"Hang on," Ron said. "This looks familiar—" Liza looked over her shoulder at it, but before she could get a good look, Mundungus had grabbed the goblet out of Ron's hand.

"Thank you!" he snapped. He pushed the goblet into the suitcase. "Well, I'll see you all—OUCH!" Harry had suddenly lunged at the man, pushing him up against the wall of the Three Broomsticks. Holding Mundungus by the neck, Harry pulled his wand out and pointed it at the man.

"Harry!" Hermione squeaked.

"You took that from Sirius's house," Harry snarled. "That had the Black family crest on it."

"What?" Liza asked sharply.

"I—no—what—?" Mundungus gasped.

"What did you do, go back the night he died and strip the place?" Harry asked.

"I—no—" Mundungus wheezed, his face turning purple.

"Give it back!" Liza said, stepping forward. "Give it to Harry, it belongs to him!"

"But—" Mundungus spluttered.

"Give it to me!" Harry yelled.

"Harry, you mustn't!" Hermione cried.

Suddenly there was a bang, and Harry and Liza were stumbling backwards. Mundungus picked up his suitcase, revolved on the spot, and, with a loud crack, Disapparated. Harry swore loudly, spinning around to find Mundungus.

"COME BACK, YOU THIEVING—!" Harry shouted.

"There's no point, Harry." Tonks had appeared, looking cold and wet.

"Hi, Tonks," Liza said immediately. Tonks gave her, Ron, and Hermione a small smile.

"Mundungus will probably be in London by now," Tonks said to Harry. "There's no point yelling."

"He's nicked Sirius's stuff!" Harry insisted. "Nicked it!"

"Yes, but still," Tonks said. "You should get out of the cold." Harry glowered up at the sky for a few seconds before Liza grabbed his arm and steered him into the Three Broomsticks.

"Bye, Tonks," she added over her shoulder.

" _He was nicking Sirius's stuff_!" Harry repeated as they crossed the threshold.

"I know, Harry, but please don't shout, people are staring," Hermione said. "Go and sit down, I'll get you a drink." Liza and Ron guided Harry over to a table, where he was still fuming when Hermione came back with four bottles of butterbeer.

"Can't the Order control Mundungus?" Harry stormed in a low voice. "Can't they at least stop him stealing everything that's not fixed down when he's at headquarters?"

"Shh!" Hermione hissed, glancing around the pub. Liza leaned forward, looking at Harry.

"Harry, I'm annoyed, too," she said quietly. "And I know it's your things he's stealing—"

"Yeah, it's my stuff!" Harry interrupted. "No wonder he wasn't pleased to see me! Well, I'm going to tell Dumbledore what's going on, he's the only one who scares Mundungus."

"Good idea," Hermione said, nodding her approval. "Ron, what are you staring at?"

"Nothing," Ron said quickly, looking away from the bar.

"Uh huh, 'nothing,' sure," Liza said, smirking as she lifted her butterbeer bottle to her mouth.

"I expect 'nothing's' in the back getting more firewhiskey," Hermione said. Ron took a swig of his butterbeer, choosing not to answer her.

The rest of their stay at the Three Broomsticks was quiet. Ron didn't look for Madam Rosmerta again, and Hermione was restless, glancing between Ron and the bar. Harry was the last to finish his butterbeer.

"Shall we call it a day and go back to school, then?" Hermione asked as soon as Harry put his empty bottle back onto the table. Harry, Ron, and Liza nodded. They all pulled their jackets and scarves around themselves and ended up following Katie Bell and her friend out of the pub. The walk on the way out of the village was windier than it had been on the way down.

As they walked, it became apparent that Katie and her friend were having some sort of argument. Liza strained to hear what they were saying.

"It's nothing to do with you, Leanne!" Katie insisted. She was carrying something in both her hands. Leanne reached over and tried to pull the package from Katie's grasp. Katie yanked back, and the package fell to the ground.

Suddenly, Katie was rising into the air. Her arms were outstretched, her eyes shut, and her hair blew fiercely around her face. Liza, Hermione, Ron, and Harry had stopped dead, watching what would happen next.

Then, when Katie was about six feet in the air, she let out a bloodcurdling scream. Her eyes opened as she continued to scream. Leanne moved first, rushing towards her friend and trying to pull her back down to the ground. Liza, Harry, Ron, and Hermione then moved forward to help, but as they reached Katie, she fell. Harry and Ron caught her and gently helped her to the ground. She was still screaming as she thrashed around in the dirt.

"Stay there!" Harry commanded. "I'm going for help!" He dashed away, leaving Liza, Hermione, and Ron with Leanne, who was distraught, and Katie.

"Katie!" Leanne was yelling. "Katie, it's me! Leanne! Katie, what's wrong?"

"I don't think she can hear you," Liza said carefully.

A few minutes later, Harry returned with Hagrid in tow.

"Get back!" Hagrid yelled. "Lemme see her!"

"Something's happened to her!" Leanne cried. "I don't know what—" Hagrid looked down at Katie for a moment before picking her up. Then he ran in the direction of the castle.

Hermione went over to Katie's friend and asked, "It's Leanne, isn't it?" Leanne nodded, and Hermione put a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"Did it just happen all of a sudden, or—?" Liza asked.

"It was when that package tore," Leanne replied, pointing at the brown paper lying on the ground. Something inside it was glittering. Ron crouched down to have a closer look, but Harry tugged him away from it.

" _Don't touch it_!" Harry instructed firmly. Then he too bent over the package, peering at the contents. "I've seen that before," he told the others. "It was on display at Borgin and Burkes ages ago. The label said it was cursed. Katie must have touched it." He looked up at Leanne. "How did Katie get hold of this?"

"Well, that's why we were arguing," Leanne said, her voice still unsteady. "She came back from the bathroom in the Three Broomsticks holding it, said it was a surprise for somebody at Hogwarts and she had to deliver it. She looked all funny when she said it… Oh no, oh no, I bet she'd been Imperiused and I didn't realize!" She began to cry again, and Hermione patted her shoulder.

"She didn't say who'd given it to her, Leanne?" she asked.

"No…she wouldn't tell me…" Leanne answered, "and I said she was being stupid and not to take it up to school, but she just wouldn't listen and…and then I tried to grab it from her…and—and—" She let out a shriek of a cry, burying her face in her gloved hands.

"We'd better get up to school," Liza said. "We'll be able to find out how she is. Come on…" Harry pulled his scarf from his neck, covered the necklace with it, and then picked it up.

"We'll need to show this to Madam Pomfrey," he reasoned.

"You be careful with that," Liza told him sternly.

"Of course I will," Harry agreed.

Hermione led the way back up to the castle with Leanne. Harry, Ron, and Liza followed behind them. Nobody said anything until they had passed through the gate and were back on the Hogwarts grounds.

"Malfoy knows about this necklace," Harry said in a low voice that only Ron and Liza could hear. "It was in a case at Borgin and Burkes four years ago, I saw him having a good look at it while I was hiding from him and his dad. _This_ is what he was buying that day when we followed him! He remembered it and he went back for it!"

"I—I dunno, Harry," Ron said. "Loads of people go to Borgin and Burkes…"

"Besides, how would Malfoy have gotten it into the castle?" Liza pointed out. "His things were searched before entering the castle, he was searched before entering the castle, and all of our mail is getting searched before entering the castle."

"He could have had someone bring it here to Hogsmeade for him," Harry suggested.

"But didn't that girl say Katie got it in the girls' bathroom?" Ron added.

"She said she came back from the bathroom with it, she didn't necessarily get it in the bathroom itself—" Harry said.

"McGonagall!" Ron said sharply. Harry and Liza looked up to the front steps to see Professor McGonagall rushing towards them.

"Hagrid says you five saw what happened to Katie Bell—upstairs to my office at once, please!" she told them. "What's that you're holding, Potter?"

"It's the thing she touched," Harry answered.

"Good lord," Professor McGonagall said as she took Harry's scarf and examined the necklace inside. "No, no, Filch, they're with me!" she said as Filch came running towards them, his Secrecy Sensor held high. "Take this necklace to Professor Snape at once, but be sure not to touch it, keep it wrapped in the scarf!"

Professor McGonagall then led them upstairs to her office. The five students entered the room, followed by the professor, who shut the door behind them. Then she turned to them all.

"Well?" she asked. "What happened?"

Leanne began to tell the story. It took her a little while because she was still crying, but she managed to tell most of it. She told Professor McGonagall about how Katie had gone to the bathroom at the Three Broomsticks and came back with the package. She mentioned that Katie was acting a bit strange, and that the two of them argued about whether Katie should bring the package back up to the school or not. Then she finished by telling Professor McGonagall about how they'd fought over the package, and then it had split open. By then, Leanne was so upset that she wasn't able to speak any more.

"All right," Professor McGonagall said, "go up to the hospital wing, please, Leanne, and get Madam Pomfrey to give you something for shock." Leanne left the office, and Professor McGonagall then turned to the other four.

"What happened when Katie touched the necklace?" she asked at once.

"She rose up in the air," Harry said, "and began to scream, and collapsed. Professor, can I see Professor Dumbledore, please?"

"The headmaster is away until Monday, Potter," Professor McGonagall said, startled.

"Away?" Harry repeated. Liza could hear that he was angry with this news, and apparently, Professor McGonagall could, as well.

"Yes, Potter, away!" she shot back. "But anything you have to say about this horrible business can be said to me, I'm sure!" Harry hesitated for only a second.

"I think Draco Malfoy gave Katie that necklace, Professor," he stated. Ron, Hermione, and Liza exchanged exasperated looks.

"That is a very serious accusation, Potter," Professor McGonagall said. "Do you have any proof?"

"No," Harry said, "but…" He then told her what he had overheard between Malfoy and Borgin over the summer. When he finished, Professor McGonagall looked confused.

"Malfoy took something to Borgin and Burkes for repair?" she asked.

"No, Professor, he just wanted Borgin to tell him how to mend something, he didn't have it with him," Harry said. "But that's not the point, the thing is that he bought something at the same time, and I think it was that necklace—"

"You saw Malfoy leaving the shop with a similar package?" Professor McGonagall questioned.

"No, Professor, he told Borgin to keep it in the shop for him—" Harry explained.

"But Harry," Hermione cut in, "Borgin asked him if he wanted to take it with him, and Malfoy said no—"

"Because he didn't want to touch it, obviously!" Harry said.

"What he actually said was, 'How would I look carrying that down the street?'" Hermione said.

"Well, he would look a bit of a prat carrying a necklace," Ron commented evenly.

"Oh, Ron," Hermione sighed, "it would be all wrapped up, so he wouldn't have to touch it, and quite easy to hide inside a cloak, so nobody would see it! I think whatever he reserved at Borgin and Burkes was noisy or bulky, something he knew would draw attention to him if he carried it down the street—and in any case," she carried on, talking over Harry as he tried to cut her off, "I asked Borgin about the necklace, don't you remember? When I went in to try and find out what Malfoy had asked him to keep, I saw it there. And Borgin just told me the price, he didn't say it was already sold or anything—"

"Well, you were being really obvious, he realized what you were up to within about five seconds, of course he wasn't going to tell you—anyway, Malfoy could've sent off for it since—" Harry retorted.

"That's enough!" Professor McGonagall said, stopping the argument before it could go any further. "Potter, I appreciate you telling me this, but we cannot point the finger of blame at Mr. Malfoy purely because he visited the shop where this necklace might have been purchased. The same is probably true of hundreds of people—"

"—that's what I said—" Ron whispered, and Liza waved at him to be quiet.

"—and in any case, we have put stringent security measures in place this year," Professor McGonagall went on. "I do not believe that necklace can possibly have entered this school without our knowledge—"

"But—" Harry attempted to interrupt.

"—and what's more," Professor McGonagall finished, "Mr. Malfoy was not in Hogsmeade today."

"How do you know, Professor?" Harry asked.

"Because he was doing detention with me," Professor McGonagall answered. "He has now failed to complete his Transfiguration homework twice in a row. So, thank you for telling me your suspicions, Potter, but I need to go up to the hospital wing now to check on Katie Bell. Good day to you all." She went to the office door and pulled it open. The four of them left the office and set off for Gryffindor tower.

"So who do you reckon Katie was supposed to give the necklace to?" Ron asked as they walked through the castle.

"Goodness only knows," Hermione said. "But whoever it was has had a narrow escape. No one could have opened that package without touching the necklace."

"It could've been meant for loads of people," Harry said. "Dumbledore—the Death Eaters would love to get rid of him, he must be one of their top targets."

"Or maybe Slughorn," Liza added. "Dumbledore thinks Voldemort really wanted him, and they can't be happy if he's sided with Dumbledore."

"Or you, Harry," Hermione said.

"Couldn't have been," Harry said, "or Katie would've just turned around in the lane and given it to me, wouldn't she? I Was behind her all the way out of the Three Broomsticks. It would have made much more sense to deliver the parcel outside Hogwarts, what with Filch searching everyone who goes in and out. I wonder why Malfoy told her to take it into the castle?"

"Harry, Malfoy wasn't in Hogsmeade!" Hermione insisted, looking a bit distressed.

"He must have used an accomplice, then," Harry figured. "Crabbe or Goyle—or, come to think of it, another Death Eater, he'll have loads better cronies than Crabbe and Goyle now he's joined up—"

Liza sighed, watching as Ron and Hermione exchanged an incredulous look. Then they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Dilligrout," Hermione said. The portrait swung forward, and the four of them piled into the common room. Nobody seemed to be talking about what had happened to Katie, so Liza assumed that nobody had heard yet.

"It wasn't a very slick attack, really, when you stop to think about it," Ron said after making a first year get out of one of the armchairs in front of the fire. He sat down in the chair and continued, "The curse didn't even make it into the castle. Not what you'd call foolproof."

"You're right," Hermione said. "It wasn't very well thought-out at all." Liza grabbed Ron by the arm and pulled him back out of the chair.

"Here you go," she said to the first year, who nervously sat back in the seat.

"But since when has Malfoy been one of the world's great thinkers?" Harry asked.

Ron, Liza, and Hermione decided it would be best to not answer him.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: Some interesting stuff to come in the next chapter…stay tuned…**_


	11. Chapter 11 Young Love

_**A/N: This chapter is on the longer side. Hope you enjoy it!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 11 – Young Love**

The following day, Katie was taken to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies, the Wizarding hospital in London. The entire school was buzzing about the accident she'd had, although nobody seemed to realize that Katie wasn't the target of the attack. Only Harry, Ron, Liza, Hermione, and Leanne knew that.

"Oh, and Malfoy knows, of course," Harry said. Ron, Liza, and Hermione didn't respond to that.

On Monday night, Harry had his second lesson with Dumbledore, and on Tuesday morning on their way down to the greenhouses for Herbology, he told Ron, Hermione, and Liza all about it. This time he had gone into Dumbledore's memory of when he first met Tom Riddle as an eleven year-old.

"Wow, scary thought, the boy You-Know-Who," Ron said when Harry had finished. They were just taking their place around a table on which sat a Snargaluff stump. "But I still don't get why Dumbledore's showing you all this. I mean, it's really interesting and everything, but what's the point?"

"Dunno," Harry said. "But he says it's all important and it'll help me survive."

"I think it's fascinating," Hermione said. "It makes absolute sense to know as much about Voldemort as possible. How else will you find out his weaknesses?"

"It pays to know your enemy," Liza added, pulling on her protective gloves.

"So how was Slughorn's latest party?" Harry asked.

"Oh, it was quite fun, really," Hermione said. "I mean, he drones on about famous ex-pupils a bit, and he absolutely _fawns_ on McLaggen because he's so well-connected, but he gave us some really nice food and introduced us to Gwenog Jones."

"Gwenog Jones?" Ron repeated. " _The_ Gwenog Jones? Captain of the Holyhead Harpies?"

"That's right," Liza said, smiling.

"Personally, I thought she was a bit full of herself, but—" Hermione began.

" _Quite_ enough chat over here!" Professor Sprout said, coming over to their table. "You're lagging behind, everybody else has started, and Neville's already got his first pod!" Liza glanced over her shoulder to see Neville holding a round, green pod and looking pleased.

"No surprises there," Liza said, shrugging.

"Okay, Professor, we're starting now!" Ron said. Then, as the professor walked away, he muttered, "Should've used Muffliato, Harry."

"No, we shouldn't!" Hermione said. Muffliato was another spell that Harry had found in his potions book, so of course Hermione was opposed to using it. "Well, come on…we'd better get going…" They all exchanged looks before diving at the stump.

The stump seemed to come to life. A group of vines sprouted from the top and whipped at the four Gryffindors. Harry and Liza each grabbed a few and knotted them together, causing a hole to form in the middle of the branches. Hermione thrust her arm into the hole, which immediately closed around her elbow. Harry, Ron, and Liza tugged at the vines until the hole opened again, and Hermione was able to pull her arm out. She was holding a green pod, just as Neville had been earlier. The vines retreated back into the stump, and it returned to looking like a dead piece of wood.

"You know, I don't think I'll be having any of these in my garden when I've got my own place," Ron said.

"I don't think you'll even have a garden when you've got your own place," Liza said in amusement, pulling her protective glasses off her face for a moment.

"Pass me a bowl," Hermione said, and Harry handed her one. She dropped the pod into the bowl.

"Don't be squeamish, squeeze it out, they're best when they're fresh!" Professor Sprout said from the front of the room.

"Anyway," Liza said as Ron took the bowl from Hermione, "Slughorn's going to have a Christmas party, Harry, and there's no way you'll be able to get out of this one because he actually asked Hermione and me to check when you have a free evening, so he could be sure to have it on a night you can come." Harry groaned.

"And this is another party just for Slughorn's favorites, is it?" Ron asked, attempting to squeeze the pod but having little luck.

"Just for the Slug Club, yes," Hermione answered. The pod suddenly flew out from under Ron's hands, hit the glass wall of the greenhouse, and knocked Professor Sprout's hat off her head. Harry hurried away to the retrieve the pod as Ron scowled.

"Look, _I_ didn't make up the name 'Slug Club'—" Hermione said as Harry returned.

"' _Slug Club_ ,'" Ron echoed. "It's pathetic. Well, I hope you enjoy your party. Why don't you try hooking up with McLaggen, then Slughorn can make you King and Queen Slug—"

"Ron, stop it," Liza said shortly. "We're allowed to bring guests to this one."

"Yes, and I was _going_ to ask you to come," Hermione said, her cheeks turning pink, "but if you think it's that stupid then I won't bother!" Harry, looking a bit embarrassed to be overhearing this, put the pod back into the bowl and tried to burst it in any way he could think of.

"You were going to ask me?" Ron asked.

"Yes," Hermione replied. "But obviously if you'd rather I _hooked up with McLaggen_ …" There was a pause, and the only noise came from Harry trying to puncture the pod with his trowel.

"No, I wouldn't," Ron mumbled. There was a shattering noise as Harry missed the pod and accidentally broke the bowl.

" _Reparo_ ," he said, pointing his wand at the bowl. Hermione and Ron both jumped at the noise, and Hermione quickly consulted her textbook.

"Hand that over, Harry," she said. "It says we're supposed to puncture them with something sharp…" Harry did as she asked, and then, with a look at Ron and Liza, the three of them went back to the stump to get another pod.

It took another few minutes, but soon Ron was pulling the next pod out of the stump, yelling, "Gotcha!" A second later, Hermione had finally broken open the first pod, and the bowl was full of something that looked like a mass of pale green worms.

"You're right, Ron," Liza said. "I don't think I'll be having one of these in my future garden, either."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Finally, on Thursday, it was Liza's turn for a lesson with Dumbledore. At eight o'clock sharp, she was knocking on his office door. When he called for her to enter, she went into the room, feeling eager to prove that she'd worked hard on her Occlumency.

"Good evening," Dumbledore said to her, smiling, although he looked a bit tired and his hand was still injured. "I hope these past few weeks have been going well for you?"

"Yes, sir," Liza answered.

"I apologize that it's been quite a while since we've been able to meet," Dumbledore said. "Have you been working on your Occlumency every night?"

"Yes, sir," Liza repeated. "I'm looking forward to see if my mental blocks are anywhere near strong enough."

"Well, then, I suggest that we waste no more time," Dumbledore said, pulling his wand out. "I am going to give you warning before I attempt to penetrate your mind's defenses, but know that in a real situation, an attacker would give you next to no notice." Liza nodded, concentrating hard on blocking her mind from him. "You may use your wand against me to force me from your mind," Dumbledore added. "Are you ready to try?"

"Yes," Liza said determinedly, sitting up straighter in her chair. Dumbledore held his wand up.

" _Legilimens_!" he said.

This time when Dumbledore entered her mind, she could feel his presence. It was as though someone was kicking at her mental walls, trying to get in. He began to sift through what she had deemed her less-important memories.

 _Oh no, you don't,_ she thought as he tried to pull a memory of Sirius up. She pushed back a different memory at him, one of her just reading as a young child, before holding her wand up and saying, " _Protego_!"

Suddenly, Dumbledore's presence vanished from her mind. Liza shook her head once to clear it before looking up at Dumbledore, who was smiling.

"Very impressive," he said. "You stopped me before I could get to a memory you wouldn't want me to see, is that correct?"

"Yes," Liza said.

"Very good," Dumbledore said. "It was very clever of you to use different memories to distract me, as well. However, there is definitely room for improvement. To accomplish Occlumency, you don't want your attacker to see _any_ of your memories, even ones that you might feel are unimportant or not useful to the attacker. This is where the concept of fake memories comes in handy."

"Fake memories?" Liza repeated, furrowing her brow in confusion.

"Fake memories can be used as a distraction, as you did with the memories you showed me," Dumbledore explained. "Therefore when an attacker gets into your mind, all he or she will see are the fake memories. These can be very handy, especially if they are convincing."

"So I should try to create a barrier of fake memories?" Liza asked, her mind racing as she thought about how she could change her mental blocks.

"I think that it would very much help you," Dumbledore replied. "But for now we will try a few more times, just so you can get the practice. _Legilimens_!"

Liza was caught off guard for a moment. She felt Dumbledore diving into her memories, and it took her a few seconds before she started throwing the unimportant memories at him as a distraction.

" _Protego_!" she said, and Dumbledore was forced from her mind.

"What went wrong that time?" Dumbledore asked.

"I wasn't prepared," Liza said. "I need to concentrate on always being prepared."

"Correct," Dumbledore said. "And again."

They worked for about a half an hour longer, and by the end of it Liza was able to cast Dumbledore out of her mind after only a few seconds.

"Good," Dumbledore said, nodding. "Very good. I would like you to keep working on it, of course, every night before bed. Start coming up with fake memories to protect your real ones, as well."

Then, before he could say any more, there was a knock on the office door. "Enter," Dumbledore called. Liza frowned as she turned to see who was interrupting her lesson.

"John?" she gasped. John gave her a small smile as he stepped through the door.

"Good evening, Mr. McDevlyn," Dumbledore said, settling back behind his desk. "What can I do for you?"

Good evening, sir," John replied. He stepped up to the desk and sat in the other empty chair. "As you know, I turned seventeen this week. I'm ready to help the Order."

"What?" Liza asked. Dumbledore held up his hand to her.

"You know that the Order is comprised of those who have already left school," Dumbledore said.

"Yes, sir," John said. "I'm not strictly speaking of joining the Order this very minute. But I have some information for you that might be helpful." He pulled out a pile of parchment and handed it over to Dumbledore. "This summer, I was able to convince my father that I was interested in becoming a Death Eater when I finished with school. You-Know-Who is very interested in rounding up younger recruits. I was able to overhear a lot of valuable information, and I took notes."

"You what?" Liza asked, unable to comprehend what he was saying. John turned to her.

"I told you that I couldn't publicly defy my father while I was still underage," he said. "But I'm seventeen now, and I'm never going back to that house if I can help it. I want to be on the right side, and I always have."

"But what will your parents do when they find out that you're going against them?" Liza asked.

"They won't do anything," John replied. "My father has done everything in his power to stay in power at the Ministry. You-Know-Who needs him to stay that way, so he won't make a scene. He needs to keep up the appearance that he's on the Ministry's side, so he won't say a thing about me."

"But—this is so dangerous," Liza said. "You are putting yourself in danger—I won't let you—"

"You won't _let_ me?" John interrupted, looking a bit angry. "You can't stop me from making this decision. I'm seventeen, I'm a legal adult in the Wizarding world. I want to help, and if this helps, then I'm glad to hand over the information." Liza gaped speechlessly at him.

Dumbledore, meanwhile, was scanning through the pieces of parchment that John had given to him.

"We suspected a lot of this," he said quietly, looking up at the Slytherin boy. "It is a good thing you brought this to my attention while Liza was still here." He looked between the two of them before continuing, "It will only be a matter of time before Voldemort overthrows the Ministry. One of the easiest ways to destroy a government is to weaken it from the inside. And when he does this, he will push his agenda on the Wizarding world. The Muggleborns will be in danger."

"Can't you do anything to stop him, sir?" Liza asked worriedly.

"I will try everything in my power to do so," Dumbledore said. "But something needs to be done to protect the Muggleborn students." He gave Liza a piercing gaze. "When the time comes, you'll know what to do." Liza, puzzled, nodded her head.

"Well, I think we'll end here for the night, Liza," Dumbledore said, still looking over the parchment in his hands. "I will send word when we'll meet again, and don't forget to work on it every night."

"Yes, sir," Liza said.

"And thank you, John," Dumbledore added. "Some of this has confirmed some of our suspicions. Now, good night to both of you."

"Good night," Liza said, standing up.

"Good night, sir," John echoed. He followed Liza from the office. They took the moving staircase down, and paused at the bottom to watch the gargoyle spring back into position.

"So," Liza said as they stood in the empty corridor, "that's why you've been spending so much time with Malfoy and his friends?"

"To keep up appearances," John replied. "I can finally be done with that now."

"But won't they be angry if they found out you sold the Death Eaters out to Dumbledore?" Liza asked.

"They don't have to know about it," John said. "Besides, Malfoy's been really distracted these days. I doubt he'll even notice that I've stopped hanging around them." They were standing about three feet away from each other, but to Liza, it felt as though there were miles between them.

"Did you know I was meeting with Dumbledore tonight?" Liza asked abruptly.

"No," John answered, seeming surprised at her question. "I passed Professor McGonagall at dinner tonight and asked her if he was going to be in the castle. She told me he would be in his office between eight and nine, and she told me the password."

"Oh," Liza said. "So…what does this mean for us, then?"

"For us?" John repeated. "Liza, might I remind you that you're the one who broke up with me."

"To protect you," Liza said grudgingly. "But obviously you don't care about protecting yourself—"

"What is that supposed to mean?" John asked exasperatedly.

"I still think that you deciding to give secret Death Eater information to Dumbledore is going to get you in trouble, not to mention the fact that you're going against your father—"

"And I've just told you, I want to be on the right side of things!"

"I thought you were a Slytherin. Aren't you all concerned with self-preservation?"

"Maybe this is self-preservation," John said. "Maybe getting out of my father's house is the best thing for me." Liza blinked; she had never thought of it that way. John sighed and said, "I know I have a lot to prove because of my father. But I'm going to be better than him. I'm going to do the right thing—"

He was caught off mid-sentence by Liza crashing into him, hugging him fiercely. He staggered back a few steps before putting his arms around her. Before she knew it, Liza was crying.

"Damn it," she mumbled, pulling away from John and wiping her eyes.

"What's wrong?" John asked.

" _I_ was wrong," Liza replied. "And I am so happy that you're still standing here." John grinned at her, the first real smile he'd given her since last school year.

"So why are you crying?" he asked.

"I think they're happy tears," Liza said. "Although—I guess this doesn't mean we're back together or anything, does it?"

"I suppose it doesn't technically mean we're back together," John said.

"So, um…" Liza blushed. "Do you—do you wanna be?" John let out a laugh.

" _That's_ how you're going to ask me?" he said, shaking his head. "C'mon, I at least asked a proper question. Try again." Liza stuck her tongue out at him.

"John," she began again, "would you like to be my boyfriend again?"

"Hmm," John hummed, pretending to be thinking hard. "I guess I could be your boyfriend again." Liza rolled her eyes, smiling at him. He pulled her into his arms again. "One condition, though," he added.

"What's that?" Liza asked.

"You work on trusting me," he said seriously. "And I mean _really_ trusting me." Liza nodded earnestly.

"Of course I will," she said.

"Good," John said before lowering his lips onto hers in a searing kiss.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

News that Liza and John had gotten back together was much bigger this time around than the first.

"It's because you're 'the Chosen One's' sister," Sally-Anne said one day in the library when Liza complained about it. "Also you're a Gryffindor dating a Slytherin."

"We dated for over a year before," Liza pointed out. "They didn't make such a big deal then."

"You've become a celebrity in your own right, I hope you realize," Sally-Anne said.

"Great," Liza deadpanned.

"So when do I get to meet this lover boy of yours?" Sally-Anne asked. "I mean, I obviously know him from classes, but I want to formerly meet him."

"Whenever you'd like, I guess," Liza replied. "He eats lunch with me a lot, you could meet him then."

October drifted into November, and although the wind subsided, it was still getting colder by the day. Harry had the Gryffindor Quidditch team out at least once a week, preparing for the first game of the year against Slytherin.

As the match approached, Ron became more and more irritated. About a week before the match, he was so unbearable to deal with that Liza pulled Harry aside to find out what was bothering him.

"He and I walked in on Dean and Ginny snogging last night after practice," Harry explained in a low voice.

"That can't be the only reason he's upset," Liza said. "Besides, who cares if Ginny and Dean were snogging? They've been dating for a while now."

"I think it just surprised him is all," Harry said. "You know, seeing his younger sister snogging someone can't be the most pleasant of experiences."

"How's he doing during practice?" Liza asked knowingly.

"He's—okay, he's not the greatest player we've got," Harry said. "But he beat McLageen fair and square. He can do it, he just needs the confidence boost. I keep trying to remind him that he helped win Gryffindor the Cup last year, but he's just not having it."

"Not to mention he's taking it out on poor Hermione," Liza said, frowning.

Throughout the next week, Harry attempted to raise Ron's confidence, but it had no effect. The morning of the match came with a clear sky. Liza followed Harry and Ron into the Great Hall. The Gryffindor table erupted into cheers upon seeing their Captain, and the three of them sat down for some breakfast.

"Cheer up, Ron!" Lavender Brown called from her spot nearby. "I know you'll be brilliant!" Ron ignored her, looking as grumpy as ever.

"Tea?" Harry asked. "Coffee? Pumpkin juice?"

"Anything," Ron said, picking at his toast.

Hermione, who had been tired of dealing with Ron, had decided to not go down to breakfast with them. She entered the Great Hall and walked up to them.

"How are you both feeling?" she asked Harry and Ron.

"Fine," Harry said, pushing a glass of pumpkin juice across the table to Ron. "There you go, Ron. Drink up." Ron picked up the glass and brought it to his lips.

"Don't drink that, Ron!" Hermione said suddenly. Harry, Ron, and Liza all looked up at her.

"Why not?" Ron demanded. Hermione glared at Harry.

"You just put something in that drink," she said accusingly.

"Excuse me?" Harry asked.

"You heard me," Hermione said. "I saw you. You just tipped something into Ron's drink. You've got the bottle in your hand right now!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Harry said. Liza looked over at him and saw a glint as he put something into his robe pockets.

"What was that?" Liza asked.

"Nothing," Harry said hurriedly.

"Ron, I warn you, don't drink it!" Hermione said. But Ron picked up the glass and drank it all in one go.

"Stop bossing me around, Hermione," he said defiantly, putting the glass back on the table. Hermione stared at him, appalled.

"You should be expelled for that," Hermione hissed at Harry, bending down to his ear. "I'd never have believed it of you, Harry!"

"Hark who's talking," Harry shot back. "Confunded anyone lately?" Hermione stood up and stomped away from them.

"She's got a point," Liza said in a low voice. "What she did was during a tryout; this is an actual game…"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Harry said one last time. He turned to Ron and said, "Nearly time." He and Ron stood from the table and headed out of the Great Hall. Liza, meanwhile, went to find Hermione.

"You all right, 'Mione?" Liza asked.

"I can't believe Harry would do that!" Hermione raged.

"Do what?" Liza asked. "What did he put in Ron's drink?"

"Felix Felicis," Hermione whispered. "The Liquid Luck that Harry won on the first day of Potions class. Slughorn told us it's illegal to use during competitions."

"Well, you know Harry and Ron," Liza said. "They take their Quidditch seriously." Hermione still looked upset and Liza added, "You're not going to tell on them, are you?"

"I should!" Hermione seethed. "As a prefect, I really should go to Professor McGonagall…"

"But you're not going to," Liza guessed. Hermione sighed and shook her head.

"I guess not," she said.

"Hey, girls," Sally-Anne said, coming to a halt next to Liza. "Fancy sitting together at the match? I am sick and tired of Cormac complaining about how he should be Keeper."

"Sure," Liza said. "C'mon, let's get going so we can find good seats." Hermione seemed reluctant to get up, but soon all three girls were crossing the grass towards the stadium.

The sky may have been clear, but it was still cold. Liza was glad she had her Gryffindor beanie with her. She hugged her scarf tighter around her neck as she followed Sally-Anne into the stands. They found some decent seats amongst the other Gryffindor supporters and waited impatiently for the game to begin.

Soon enough, the teams were marching out onto the field. Madam Hooch, the referee, had the two Captains—Harry and a big Slytherin name Urquhart—shake hands before releasing the balls. The game had begun.

"Well, there they go, and I think we're all surprised to see the team that Potter's put together this year," a voice said, booming over the stadium. Liza was surprised for a moment before realizing that Lee Jordan—friend of the Weasley twins and former commentator—had graduated the year before. The new commentator was Zacharias Smith, a sixth-year Hufflepuff whom Liza didn't like very much.

"Many thought, given Ronald Weasley's patchy performance as Keeper last year, that he might be off the team, but of course, a close personal friendship with the Captain does help…" Zacharias continued. The Slytherin supporters cheered for this, and Liza glared in the direction of the commentator's podium.

"Oh, and here comes Slytherin's first attempt on goal, it's Urquhart streaking down the pitch and—"

"Come on, Ron!" Liza shouted, crossing her fingers. Urquhart threw the Quaffle, and Ron caught it. Liza let out a loud whoop.

"—Weasley saves it, well, he's bound to get lucky sometimes, I suppose…"

Hermione sniffed at Zacharias's use of the word 'lucky.' The game continued, and Zacharias kept making snide comments about both of the Weasleys being on the team. However, when the score reached sixty-zero in favor of Gryffindor—Ron having stopped everything thrown at him, and Ginny having scored four of the six Gryffindor goals—Zacharias moved on to making remarks about the Gryffindor Beaters.

However, the Gryffindor team was performing splendidly. The three Chasers kept scoring and Ron kept making saves, looking very pleased with himself. He even pretended to conduct the Gryffindor supporters when they broke into a chorus of "Weasley Is Our King."

Liza looked over at Harry who was circling the pitch for signs of the Snitch. Then the Slytherin Seeker collided into him.

"Foul!" Liza shouted, but Madam Hooch hadn't been looking at them. "Oh, come on, that was deliberate…"

"I wonder where Malfoy is?" Sally-Anne remarked as the Slytherin Seeker sped away from Harry. Liza shrugged.

"And I think Harper of Slytherin's seen the Snitch!" Zacharias said into the megaphone. "Yes, he's certainly seen something Potter hasn't!" Not a moment later, Harry laid flat out on his broom and zoomed towards the other Seeker.

"Wow, way to give away that Harper saw the Snitch," Sally-Anne said, snickering. "I mean, Smith's been up there all game trying to make fun of us and now he's gone and told Harry that Harper sees the Snitch!"

Liza and Hermione were far too distressed to reply. Liza clutched at her scarf, shouting encouragement as Harry neared Harper.

Then, Harry spun around with his fist held high in the air. He had caught the Snitch! The rest of the team mobbed him while they were still in the air, except for Ginny, who was flying straight at the commentator's podium. She crashed right into it, and the Gryffindor supporters cheered loudly.

"Do you think she's all right?" Hermione asked worriedly. Ginny emerged from the wreckage, seeming completely unscathed. Liza and Sally-Anne continued to cheer with the rest of their House, but Hermione had gone quiet.

"What's wrong?" Liza asked her once the team had gone into the locker rooms.

"Harry really shouldn't have done it," Hermione said in a low voice. "Now they've cheated and won; it would have been one thing to cheat and lose."

"Look, we'll go into the locker room and talk to them," Liza said.

"I'm going to head back up to the school," Sally-Anne said. A couple of her friends had showed up at her elbow. "I'll see you two later!"

"Bye," Liza said, and Sally-Anne departed. Then Liza and Hermione headed for the locker room. They waved to the rest of the team as they filed out, and when they went inside, they found Harry and Ron alone.

"I want a word with you, Harry," Hermione said immediately. "You shouldn't have done it. You heard Slughorn, it's illegal."

"What are you going to do, turn us in?" Ron asked.

"What are you two talking about?" Harry said, turning away, but Liza saw his mouth twitch upward.

"You know perfectly well what we're talking about!" Hermione exclaimed. "You spiked Ron's juice with lucky potion at breakfast! Felix Felicis!"

"No, I didn't," Harry replied, turning so that they could all see him smiling.

"Yes you did, Harry, and that's why everything went right, there were Slytherin players missing and Ron saved everything!" Hermione insisted.

"I didn't put it in!" Harry said. He pulled the bottle of Felix Felicis from his pocket and showed it to the three of them. It was still full and sealed tight. "I wanted Ron to think I'd done it, so I faked it when I knew you were looking." He looked at Ron and said, "You saved everything because you felt lucky. You did it all yourself." He put the bottle back in his pocket.

"There really wasn't anything in my pumpkin juice?" Ron asked. "But the weather's good…and Vaisey couldn't play… I honestly haven't been given lucky potion?" Harry shook his head.

"I knew you wouldn't cheat for a big game like this," Liza said, grinning at her brother. Then Ron turned to Hermione.

" _You added Felix Felicis to Ron's juice this morning, that's why he saved everything_!" he sneered in a shrill imitation of Hermione. "See! I can save goals without help, Hermione!" He strode towards the door of the locker room.

"I never said you couldn't—" Hermione gaped. "Ron, _you_ thought you'd been given it too!" But Ron left the room without a look back, and Harry and Liza looked at Hermione.

"Er," Harry said, "shall…shall we go up to the party, then?"

"You go!" Hermione cried. "I'm _sick_ of Ron at the moment, I don't know what I'm supposed to have done…"

"'Mione—" Liza began.

"No!" Hermione cried. "No, just go without me!" Then she stomped out of the locker room, leaving Harry and Liza behind.

"Well, that's not how I wanted that to end," Harry said, scratching the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to make Hermione upset like that."

"It's not your fault," Liza said. "It's Ron's. Why is he so mad at her, anyway? He's been cross with her for over a week now." Harry sighed.

"When we saw Ginny snogging Dean, she may have mentioned that Hermione had kissed Krum before," Harry said. "I think that's why he's so upset."

"But—But that happened two years ago!" Liza said, shaking her head. "Anyway, come on. Let's head back up to the common room. Maybe somebody will have managed to steal sweets like the Weasley twins used to."

When they arrived back at the common room, they found that the party was already in full swing. People clapped and cheered when Harry entered the room, and he was soon passed around. Liza slipped between a few people and found herself next to Ginny.

"Good game," Liza said, smiling. "I especially liked the bit at the end where you tried to take Zacharias Smith out all by yourself."

"I _did_ take him out all by myself, thank you very much," Ginny said, beaming. "He's going to have a few scrapes and bruises on him for a while. Maybe he'll think twice about bad-mouthing people in front of the entire school."

"I wouldn't count on it," Liza said. "I don't know how he managed to get into Hufflepuff… Anyway, have you seen Hermione anywhere?"

"Not yet," Ginny said. Then Harry joined them, pulling himself out of the crowd.

"Looking for Ron?" Ginny asked him before he could say anything. "He's over there, the filthy hypocrite." She pointed into a corner of the room, where Liza saw Ron for the first time. He and Lavender were kissing furiously, pressed very tightly together.

"It looks like he's trying to eat her face!" Liza couldn't help saying. Ginny giggled.

"I suppose he's got to refine his technique somehow," she said. "Good game, Harry." She patted Harry's arm and then walked away through the crowd.

"Well, looks like he'll be busy for a while," Harry said, turning back towards Liza. "What now?"

"I—" Liza broke off, distracted by the portrait hole closing behind a head of bushy brown hair. "Hermione," she breathed. Without saying anything to each other, Harry and Liza pushed their way back to the portrait hole and climbed out into the corridor.

"Where do you reckon she went?" Harry asked when they found the hall deserted.

"Let's just try some of these classrooms," Liza guessed, shrugging. They went to the first one, where the door was ajar.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, peering inside. Then he walked in, Liza right behind him. Liza went right up to her friend and sat down next to her, putting her arm around her shoulders. There were about a dozen tiny yellow birds flying around Hermione's head, which she had evidently conjured up herself.

"Oh, hello," Hermione said. "I was just practicing."

"Yeah…they're—er—really good…" Harry said, somewhat lamely.

"Ron seems to be enjoying the celebrations," Hermione observed.

"Er…does he?" Harry asked. Liza gave him an exasperated look.

"Don't pretend you didn't see him," Hermione said. "He wasn't exactly hiding it, was—?"

The door to the classroom opened suddenly, and Ron stumbled in. He was pulling Lavender along with him. Liza's mouth popped open in surprise.

"Oh," Ron said, stopping short.

"Oops!" Lavender giggled. She backed out of the room again, and the door shut behind her. There was a very heavy silence. Hermione was staring at Ron, who was looking at the floor.

"Hi, Harry!" Ron said, trying to seem upbeat. "Wondered where you'd got to!" Hermione stood up slowly, the birds still circling her head.

"You shouldn't leave Lavender waiting outside," Hermione said in a strangely calm voice. "She'll wonder where you've gone." Then she began walking towards the door. Liza and Harry exchanged a concerned look, but Ron just looked relieved.

" _Oppugno_!" Hermione shrieked suddenly. She pointed her wand at Ron, and the birds flew at him. They attacked him, pecking at his skin.

"Gerremoffme!" Ron shouted, but Hermione simply gave him a withering look and left the classroom.

Liza pulled her wand out and said, " _Finite_!" The birds disappeared, and Ron looked up at her gratefully.

"We'll talk about this later," Liza said firmly, looking at him. "I have to go make sure Hermione's okay."

With that, Liza turned and hurried after her distressed friend, wishing that Ron would have a little more tact next time.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	12. Chapter 12 Slughorn's Christmas Party

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 12 – Slughorn's Christmas Party**

Christmas was fast approaching. As December arrived, there was snow falling almost daily. The castle was decorated for the holidays with Christmas trees and garland. There had also been mistletoe hung throughout the hallways, causing Harry to take different routes to his classes, since he was being mobbed by groups of girls.

"You know, it's _really_ not that funny," Liza said as Ron started roaring with laughter when Harry had to duck behind a tapestry to avoid Romilda Vane. "It's ridiculous that Harry can't even walk the halls anymore."

Before Ron could say anything back, he and Liza were joined by Lavender. Lavender latched onto Ron's arm, giggling. Liza felt her eyebrows rise on their own; she spent a lot of time these days avoid Ron when Lavender was around.

"I'll see you later, Ron," Liza said shortly before speeding away from the couple.

Both Liza and Harry were trying very hard to stay out of Ron's and Hermione's feud. Liza had a much easier time of it than Harry because she was spending so much time with John lately. She also liked to spend time in the library with Sally-Anne, who had much less drama going on than Ron or Hermione.

In the evenings, Harry and Liza usually joined Hermione in the library. Hermione didn't want to spend time in the common room anymore because Ron and Lavender were usually there.

The talk of the school these days was Slughorn's Christmas party. Because of the exclusiveness of the party, everyone was dying to know who was going. John had recently become a member of the Slug Club as well, due in part to his father's place at the Ministry and the talent he displayed in Potions class, so he ended up asking Liza before she could ask him.

The night before Slughorn's Christmas party, Liza found herself once again studying in the library with Harry and Hermione. For some reason, Ron was brought up once again.

"He's at perfect liberty to kiss whomever he likes," Hermione said. "I really couldn't care less." She dotted an _i_ on her parchment so hard that she poked a hole in the page. Harry busied himself with his Potions homework.

"You really not convincing anyone when you say it like that," Liza said. Hermione scowled.

"And incidentally," she said, turning to Harry, "you need to be careful."

"For the last time," Harry said, looking up from his Potions book, "I am not giving back this book, I've learned more from the Half-Blood Prince than Snape or Slughorn have taught me in—"

"I'm not talking about your stupid so-called Prince," Hermione said, wrinkling her nose at Harry's book. "I'm talking about earlier. I went into the girls' bathroom just before I came in here and there were about a dozen girls in there, including that Romilda Vane, trying to decide how to slip you a love potion. They're all hoping they're going to get you to take them to Slughorn's party, and they all seem to have bought Fred's and George's love potions, which I'm afraid to say probably work—"

"Why didn't you confiscate them then?" Harry asked.

"They didn't have the potions with them in the bathroom," Hermione said. "They were just discussing tactics. As I doubt whether even the _Half-Blood Prince_ could dream up an antidote for a dozen different love potions at once, I'd just invite someone to go with you, that'll stop all the others thinking they've still got a chance. It's tomorrow night, they're getting desperate."

"There isn't anyone I want to invite," Harry said.

"Well, just be careful what you drink, because Romilda Vane looked like she meant business," Hermione said.

"You know they won't leave you alone until you're going with someone," Liza pointed out. "There really isn't one person you can take with you?"

"I really don't want to think about it," Harry replied. "Hang on a moment. I thought Filch had banned anything bought at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes?"

"And when has anyone ever paid attention to what Filch has banned?" Hermione questioned, not looking up from her essay.

"But I thought all the owls were being searched," Harry continued. "So how come these girls are able to bring love potions into school?"

"Fred and George send them disguised as perfumes and cough potions," Liza said. "It's part of their Owl Order Service."

"You know a lot about it," Harry said, frowning suspiciously.

"It was on the boxes," Liza said, rolling her eyes. "Fred and George showed those love potions to Ginny, Hermione, and me last summer, remember?"

"The point is, Filch is being fooled, isn't he?" Harry said. "These girls are getting stuff into the school disguised as something else! So why couldn't Malfoy have brought the necklace into the school—?"

"Oh, Harry…" Hermione sighed, "not that again…"

"Come on, why not?" Harry asked.

"Look," Hermione began, "Secrey Sensors detect jinxes, curses, and concealment charms, don't they? They're used to find Dark Magic and Dark objects. They'd have picked up a powerful curse, like the one on that necklace, within seconds. But something that's just been put in the wrong bottle wouldn't register—and anyway, love potions aren't Dark or dangerous—"

"Easy for you to say," Harry said darkly.

"—so it would be down to Filch to realize it wasn't a cough potion, and he's not a very good wizard, I doubt he can tell one potion from—" Hermione broke off suddenly. She turned to see Madam Pince, the strict and usually-grumpy librarian, standing behind her with her lamp held high.

"The library is now closed," Madam Pince sniffed. "Mind you return anything you have borrowed to the correct— _what have you been doing to that book, you depraved boy_?" She had spotted the Prince's potions book.

"It isn't the library's, it's mine!" Harry said, picking the book up quickly before Madam Pince could take it from him.

"Despoiled!" she cried. "Desecrated! Befouled!"

"It's just a book that's been written on!" Harry insisted. Hermione and Liza grabbed Harry and steered him away from the distraught librarian.

"She'll ban you from the library if you're not careful," Liza warned him as they walked down the corridor.

"Why did you have to bring that stupid book?" Hermione asked.

"It's not my fault she's barking mad," Harry grumbled. "Or d'you think she overheard you being rude to Filch? I've always thought there might be something going on between them…"

"Oh, ha ha…" Hermione said sarcastically.

"Really?" Liza said. "Pince and Filch? I don't see it…"

They discussed the idea of Madam Pince and Filch having a relationship on the way back to the common room. When they reached the portrait hole, Harry gave the Fat Lady the password. She swung forward to let them in.

"Hi, Harry!" Romilda Vane bounded forward after they'd entered the common room. "Fancy a gillywater?" Hermione and Liza exchanged amused looks.

"No thanks," Harry said. "I don't like it much."

"Well, take these anyway," Romilda said, handing over a box. "Chocolate cauldrons, they've got Firewhiskey in them. My gran sent them to me, but I don't like them."

"Oh—right—thanks a lot," Harry said. "Er—I'm just going over here with…" Then he hastily followed Hermione and Liza.

"Told you," Hermione said. "Sooner you ask someone, sooner they'll all leave you alone and you can—" She stopped, having noticed Ron and Lavender having their usual snog-fest in a nearby armchair. "Well, good night," Hermione said suddenly. She turned and left for the girls' dormitory.

"You really need to ask somebody," Liza said as she and Harry stood near the dormitory stairs. "Just ask anyone, for goodness sake. It's not that big of a deal." As soon as she said it, she knew it wasn't true. For some reason, this party had turned into a very big deal.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Harry asked.

"No," Liza said. "I don't know which girls you know. But just ask somebody, okay?"

"Fine, I'll do that," Harry said sourly.

"I think I'm going to head up to bed, too," Liza said after a moment of silence. "Make sure Hermione's doing all right and all that."

"Good night," Harry said, and Liza climbed the stairs up to her dormitory.

"Hey, Liza," Sally-Anne greeted. Liza was surprised that she was in the dormitory; usually Sally-Anne hung out with her other friends until much later.

"Hi," Liza said. "What are you doing up here so early?"

"Oh, I was just grabbing my Transfiguration book," Sally-Anne said. "Then I ran into Hermione here. She looked a bit upset."

"I'm fine," Hermione sniffed from her bed.

"Oh, you are not," Liza sighed. "You've been upset every since Ron started snogging Lavender."

"He can date whomever he wishes," Hermione said. "I don't—"

"Hermione, yes, you do care," Liza said firmly. "You keep saying that you don't, but it's very obvious that you care." She went over to Hermione's bed and sat on the end of it. "And I know it's unpleasant seeing them sucking face every day in the common room, but you need to stop pretending that you don't care, at least in front of me."

"Listen, Hermione," Sally-Anne said, coming over to the bed as well, "Ron needs to go through with this so-called relationship so he knows how much he needs you in his life." She patted Hermione on the shoulder. "Everything will work itself out in the end." Then she picked up her bag, said farewell, and left the dormitory.

"Why does it bother me so much, Liza?" Hermione asked. Crookshanks jumped up onto the bed and rubbed against Hermione's knees, purring.

"Because you like him, Hermione," Liza replied simply.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next day in Transfiguration, Hermione and Ron continued to be at each other's throats. They were supposed to be changing the color of their own eyebrows. On Ron's first attempt, he managed to give himself a handlebar mustache, and Hermione sniggered unkindly. In retaliation, Ron meanly and exaggeratingly mimicked Hermione jumping up and down when a question was asked. Lavender and Parvati found the display to be quite funny, but when class ended, Hermione raced from the room, leaving half of her things behind.

"You are a terrible friend, Ronald Weasley," Liza snarled at him before grabbing Hermione's extra things and leaving the room with Harry to track her down.

One floor below their classroom, they met up with Hermione, who was leaving the girls' bathroom with Luna Lovegood.

"Oh, hello, Harry," Luna said brightly. "Did you know one of your eyebrows is bright yellow?"

"Hi, Luna," Harry replied.

"Here, Hermione," Liza said, handing over the books she had left behind.

"Oh, thank you, Liza," Hermione sniffed. "Well, I'd better get going…" Then she hurried off. Liza shook her head.

"I'm on it," she said. "I'll meet up with you later, Harry." Liza ran down the corridor to catch up with Hermione.

Later, at dinner, Harry told Ron and Liza that he had asked Luna to go to Slughorn's party with him.

"You could've taken _anyone_!" Ron said. " _Anyone_! And you chose Loony Lovegood?"

"Don't call her that, Ron," Ginny said, who was passing them to join her friends. "I'm really glad you're taking her, Harry, she's so excited." The three of them watched as Ginny joined Dean. Further down the table, Hermione was sitting by herself.

"You could say sorry," Liza said coldly to Ron, who was looking at Hermione as well.

"What, and get attacked by another flock of canaries?" Ron asked.

"What did you have to imitate her for?" Liza asked.

"She laughed at my mustache!" Ron exclaimed.

"So do we," Harry said, "it was the stupidest thing I've ever seen."

But Lavender and Parvati had appeared at that moment. Lavender squeezed onto the bench between Harry and Ron, and she threw her arms around Ron's neck.

"Hi, Harry, Liza," Parvati said, sitting on the other side of Harry.

"Hi," Harry and Liza replied. Harry asked, "How're you? You're staying at Hogwarts, then? I heard your parents wanted you to leave."

"I managed to talk them out of it for the time being," Parvati said. "That Katie thing really freaked them out, but as there hasn't been anything since… Oh, hi, Hermione!" she added enthusiastically. Hermione smiled right back.

"Hi, Parvati!" Hermione said. "Are you going to Slughorn's party tonight?"

"No invite," Parvati said. "I'd love to go, though, it sounds like it's going to be really good… You're going, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm meeting Cormac at eight, and we're—" Hermione began. There was a suction noise, and Ron looked up. Hermione continued as though she hadn't noticed him, "—we're going up to the party together."

"Cormac?" Liza asked suspiciously, eying Hermione closely. "Cormac McLaggen, you mean?"

"That's right," Hermione said. "The one who _almost_ became Gryffindor Keeper."

"Are you going out with him, then?" Parvati asked.

"Oh—yes—didn't you know?" Hermione asked. Liza looked at Harry in alarm.

"No!" Parvati said. "Wow, you like your Quidditch players, don't you? First Krum, then McLaggen…"

"I like _really good_ Quidditch players," Hermione said. "Well, see you… Got to go and get ready for the party…" She turned and left. Lavender and Parvati started to discuss what they'd just discovered, and Liza stood up from the table and ran after Hermione.

"'Mione!" Liza shouted, running up the marble steps to catch up with her. "What the hell was all that about?"

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, trying to sound innocent.

"Really? Cormac?" Liza shot back. "You're going to Slughorn's party with _Cormac_?"

"Yes," Hermione replied. "I figured he'd annoy Ron the most…" Liza groaned.

"Well, you definitely got Ron's attention," Liza said. "I think that's the first time I've ever seen him disengage from Lavender because of something someone said." They continued on in silence for a little while.

"Look, I know you don't approve," Hermione spoke up as they reached the portrait hole, "but could you help me get ready for the party?"

"Of course I will," Liza said with sigh. "I have to get ready, too."

Once up in their dormitory, the girls changed into their dress robes. Hermione's new ones were pale pink and fell to mid-calf. Liza's were bright purple and floor length. Then they helped each other with their hair: Hermione pinned hers back away from her face, while Liza put hers up in a bun. She had grown her black hair out long again, and she was grateful for the extra length. After applying a little bit of makeup, the girls both slipped into shoes with a slight heel and left the dormitory.

In the common room, they met up with Ginny and Dean. Ginny was wearing a floor length, sparkling midnight blue dress, which Liza was quick to comment on.

"Look at you," Liza admired, and Ginny struck an exaggerated pose. "Stop growing up, it just reminds me that I'm getting older, too."

"No promises," Ginny said, winking. "Do you want to walk with us down to Slughorn's office?"

"I told Cormac I'd meet him—" Hermione started.

" _Cormac_?" Ginny repeated. "Please tell me you're not trying to make my brother jealous with Cormac McLaggen." Hermione blushed and ducked her head.

"She is," Liza replied for her. "I'll go down to Slughorn's with you two, though, if you don't mind the third wheel. John's meeting me there."

"We don't mind," Ginny said, smiling. "Well, we'll leave you to meet your date, shall we?" she added to Hermione.

"Yes," Hermione said. "I don't want to hold you up."

"We'll see you there, then," Liza said. She followed Dean and Ginny from the common room, and they set off to Slughorn's office.

"I can't believe she asked Cormac McLaggen to the party," Ginny said as they walked along.

"She was going to take Ron," Liza remarked. "But then Ron decided to be the world's hugest pain in the ass, and now whenever I see him, he's sucking face with Lavender." Liza knew she was making a face, especially when Dean and Ginny chuckled. "Lavender and Ron, though. Who saw that one coming?"

"I'm sure it won't last," Ginny said airily. "Like you said, all they do is snog."

"Seamus says that Parvati said that Lavender was bored and thought Ron was cute," Dean supplied.

"What a wonderful reason to start dating someone," Liza said.

A few minutes later, they reached the corridor outside Slughorn's office. Leaning against the wall waiting for Liza was John, in his classic black dress robes.

"I'll see you two inside, I'm sure," Liza said, smiling at Ginny and Dean. The two of them continued into Slughorn's office, and Liza turned to John. He pushed himself off the wall and walked over to her. After giving her a little bow, he offered her his arm.

"Good evening," he said, pressing a kiss to her temple as she took his arm.

"Hi," Liza replied. "Are you ready for this?"

"I suppose I am," John said. Then he led her into Slughorn's office.

The room looked much bigger than the other teachers' offices seemed, although it may have been magicked to be that way. There were green, red, and gold drapes hanging from the walls, and from the ceiling hung a giant chandelier with real fairies flying around inside it. Music was coming from one corner, and a few house-elves were bustling around the room, carrying trays of food.

"John!" Slughorn said, noticing Liza and John entering the room. "One of my star sixth-year pupils! And Liza, my dear. Delighted that you could make it."

"Good evening, Professor," Liza said politely.

"Come along, I'd like you to meet someone," Slughorn said, leading them over to a man standing in the center of the room.

"Liza, John, this is an old student of mine, Eldred Worple," Slughorn introduced. "He's the author of _Blood Brothers: My Life Amongst the Vampires_. And this is his friend Sanguini." Worple shook Liza's hand first and then John's. Liza eyed Sanguini anxiously; he was definitely a vampire.

"Wonderful to meet you, Miss Jones," Worple said, pulling Liza's attention back to him. "It was such a surprise to find out that Harry Potter had a twin sister, of course. But now that I see you in person, it's obvious that you are Lily's daughter!"

"Ah, Cormac!" Slughorn called over the heads of some guests. Cormac McLaggen entered the room with his usual swagger, Hermione on his arm. "Come along over here, Cormac, my lad." Then Slughorn introduced Cormac and Hermione to the author, and Liza and John took their chance to slip away.

"Would you like a drink?" John asked, gesturing to the refreshment table.

"Yes, please," Liza said. "Butterbeer, if you wouldn't mind." John smiled at her and pushed his way through the crowd to get to the drinks. Hermione pulled Cormac over to Liza.

"Hi, Hermione," Liza said. "Hello, Cormac."

"Hello, Liza," Cormac said without looking at her. He was glancing around the room. Hermione grimaced at Liza while Cormac was distracted. Liza simply raised an eyebrow back at Hermione; what did she expect with a date like Cormac? Then Cormac looked at Liza and smiled before offering her his hand in greeting.

John returned, carrying two bottles of butterbeer. He gave one to Liza, who said to Cormac, "I don't know if you know my boyfriend, John?" Cormac shook John's hand.

"Yes, I think we met at the last of Slughorn's dinner parties," Cormac said. "You just became a member of the Slug Club, didn't you?"

"Yes," John replied, giving Liza a sidelong glance.

"Hermione, would you like a drink?" Cormac asked, turning back to his date.

"Oh, I would love—" Hermione began, but before she could finish her sentence, Cormac whisked her away. Liza raised her eyebrows before taking a sip of her butterbeer.

"Liza!" a voice called her name. She turned to see Harry pulling himself away from the author with the vampire. Luna drifted along behind him.

"There you are," Liza said, smiling at the two of them. "Hi, Luna."

"Hello, Liza," Luna replied, looking quite happy. "What a fancy party, don't you think?"

"I guess it is," Liza replied. She eyed Blaise Zabini as he passed them, although he didn't look at them once.

"Have you seen Hermione?" Harry asked.

"You just missed her, actually," Liza replied. "Cormac dragged her off to get drinks."

"So she's really here with him?" Harry questioned, his eyes scanning the crowd.

"Yes," Liza said. "Did you think she was lying?"

"I thought there might be a possibility she was," Harry admitted. "You know, just to make Ron jealous."

"There she is," John said suddenly, pointing to where a head with bushy brown hair was disappearing through the crowd.

"Hermione!" Harry said, dragging Luna behind him. Liza looked at John, who shrugged, and the two of them followed. " _Hermione_!" They caught up to the girl in question, who turned around.

"Harry!" Hermione said. Her hair had come undone on one side. "There you are, thank goodness! Hi, Luna!"

"What happened to your hair?" Liza asked, hurrying over to her friend and helping her to pin it back up.

"Oh, I've just escaped—I mean, I've just left Cormac," Hermione explained. "Under the mistletoe."

"Serves you right for coming with him," Harry said stubbornly.

"I thought he'd annoy Ron the most," Hermione said. "I debated for a while about Zacharias Smith, but I thought, on the whole—"

" _You considered Smith_?" Harry repeated in shock.

"Yes, I did, and I'm starting to wish I'd chosen him," Hermione said, "McLaggen makes Grawp look like a gentleman."

"I'm sure Zacharias would have been no better," Liza said, scowling.

"Let's go this way," Hermione said, "we'll be able to see McLageen coming, he's so tall…" She led the way to the other side of the room. Harry and Luna paused to get some drinks, and then they retreated to a corner, noticing too late that Professor Trelawney, the Divination teacher, was standing there alone.

"Hello," Luna said to the professor.

"Good evening, my dear," Professor Trelawney said, looking down at Luna. She seemed to have a hard time focusing, and she smelled strongly of alcohol. "I haven't seen you in my classes lately…"

"No, I've got Firenze this year," Luna said.

"Oh, of course," Professor Trelawney said. "Or Dobbin, as I prefer to think of him. You would have thought, would you not, that now I am returned to the school Professor Dumbledore might have got rid of the horse? But no…we share classes… It's an insult, frankly, an insult. Do you know…"

Harry beckoned Liza and Hermione to take a few steps away as Professor Trelawney continued to talk to Luna.

"Let's get something straight," he said to Hermione. "Are you planning to tell Ron that you interfered at Keeper tryouts?"

"You did what?" John asked, looking amused that Hermione would do something against the rules.

"I didn't do anything that nobody else would have done in my place," Hermione insisted. Then she looked at Harry and asked, "Do you really think I'd stoop that low?"

"Hermione, if you can asked out McLaggen—" Harry started.

"There's a difference," Hermione cut him off. "I've got no plans to tell Ron anything about what might, or might not, have happened at Keeper tryouts."

"Good," Harry said. "Because he'll just fall apart again, and we'll lose the next match—"

"Quidditch!" Hermione exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration. "Is that all boys care about? Cormac hasn't asked me one single question about myself, no, I've just been treated to 'A Hundred Great Saves Made by Cormac McLaggen' nonstop every since—oh no, here he comes!"

Suddenly, she was gone. Liza exchanged a bewildered look with Harry as Cormac joined them.

"Seen Hermione?" he asked.

"No, sorry," Harry said, turning back to Luna. Cormac turned to Liza and John, who also shook their heads.

"I hope she hasn't stepped out on me," Cormac said, frowning. "If you do happen to see her, can you tell her that I'm looking for her?"

"I'll do that," Liza said, and Cormac walked away. Liza turned to John, her eyebrows raised.

"So she only came with him to make Ron jealous?" John asked. "Did she not realize that she'd have to spend the rest of the night with him? It's not like Ron's here to see them together."

"I don't know what she was thinking," Liza replied, "and I'm not sure that I want to." She glanced over her shoulder to see that Harry was being flanked by Professors Trelawney, Slughorn, and Snape. Then she tipped her butterbeer bottle up and drained the last few drops.

"Okay, I'm tired of thinking and talking about this whole Hermione and Ron thing," Liza said. "I just want to have a nice evening with you—"

There was a distraction as Filch entered the room, dragging Malfoy behind him. The party quieted as everyone turned to see what was happening.

"Professor Slughorn," Filch announced, "I discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor. He claims to have been invited to your party and to have been delayed in setting out. Did you issue him with an invitation?" Malfoy, looking very angry, yanked his ear out of Filch's hand.

"All right, I wasn't invited!" he said. "I was trying to gate-crash, happy?"

"No, I'm not!" Filch said, although he looked excited at the prospect of punishing a student. "You're in trouble, you are! Didn't the headmaster say that nighttime prowling's out, unless you've got permission, didn't he, eh?"

"That's all right, Argus, that's all right," Slughorn said. "It's Christmas, and it's not a crime to want to come to a party. Just this once, we'll forget any punishment; you may stay, Draco."

Filch's expression turned sour immediately, but Malfoy didn't look pleased that Slughorn was letting him stay. After a few seconds, Filch turned and left, and Liza could hear him muttering something under his breath as he passed them. The party started back up again.

"Thank you, sir," Malfoy said to Slughorn, a smile plastered on his face.

"It's nothing, nothing," Slughorn said. "I did know your grandfather, after all…"

"He always spoke very highly of you, sir," Malfoy said at once. "Said you were the best potion-maker he'd ever known…" Liza snorted, turning away from the scene.

"Well, that was interesting," she said to John.

"Yeah, a little," John said, frowning. "I wonder why he wanted to come to this party so badly, though? He's never really expressed interest in being part of the Slug Club… I mean, he was definitely put-out that Slughorn hadn't picked him to join, but he's been so distracted lately."

"Distracted with what?" Liza asked, intrigued.

"I'm not sure," John said. "He hasn't told anyone what he's been up to—" He broke off, looking over Liza's shoulder. Liza turned her head quickly to see Snape leading Malfoy from the party.

"He's up to something, though," John continued in a low voice. "There is something going on that he's trying very hard to keep a secret. He's even stopped doing his homework, he's been so busy."

"Huh," Liza said, frowning in concern. She made a mental note to let Harry know what John had said about Malfoy. But when she turned around to look for her brother, she saw Luna standing alone with Professor Trelawney.

"Excuse me, Professor," Liza said, hurrying over and pulling Luna aside. "Where's Harry?" she asked Luna.

"He said he had to use the bathroom," Luna replied cheerfully.

"The bathroom, huh?" Liza repeated. "Okay. Sorry to interrupt your conversation."

"That's all right," Luna said, smiling. Then she went back to Professor Trelawney.

"This party really hasn't been much of a party," Liza commented. John rubbed her arms with his hands.

"Do you want to get out of here?" he asked quietly. Liza looked up at him, smirking.

"Sure," she said. She took John's arm, and they left Slughorn's office.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: The party was hard to write for some reason, so it's not very good. Oh well.**_


	13. Chapter 13 Christmas at the Burrow

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 13 – Christmas at the Burrow**

Christmas was upon them. Liza joined Ron, Ginny, and Harry up in Professor McGonagall's office on the day they were heading back to the Burrow. Since Harry's security was such a big deal, it had been decided that they would be Flooing to the Burrow instead of taking the Hogwarts Express into London with everyone else.

"Have a good holiday," Professor McGonagall said to them before they stepped up to her fireplace.

Once at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley swarmed them, hugging them all tightly.

"It is so good to see you all," she said. "How has school been?" There were murmurings of "good" between the four students. "Fred and George are here already. Ginny, I need your help making up all of the beds. Would the three of you please peel these sprouts for dinner?" Mrs. Weasley pointed at the pile of sprouts at the sink.

"We just got here!" Ron said indignantly when Mrs. Weasley and Ginny left the kitchen. "You think she'd let us have some time to settle in before having us do housework." Liza rolled her eyes.

"What is there to get settled?" she asked him.

"I've got something to tell you guys anyway," Harry said as they went over to the sink. "Malfoy showed up to the party last night, even though he wasn't invited."

"What a prat," Ron said. The three of them began to peel.

"Slughorn let him stay, though," Liza said. "Said it was Christmas and it wasn't a crime to want to come to a party."

"Well, then Malfoy left with Snape," Harry said. "Snape said he wanted a word. So I followed them."

"Of course you did," Liza said. "I'd wondered where you'd gone."

"Just listen," Harry said impatiently. He then told Liza and Ron about the overheard conversation between Malfoy and Snape.

"So Snape was offering to help him?" Ron asked. "He was definitely _offering to help him_?"

"If you ask that once more," Harry said, "I'm going to stick this sprout—"

"I'm only checking!" Ron said hastily.

" _Yes, Snape was offering to help him_!" Harry said. "He said he'd promised Malfoy's mother to protect him, that he'd made an Unbreakable Oath or something—"

"An Unbreakable Vow?" Liza said, looking concerned. "Are you sure that's what he said?"

"Yes, I'm sure," Harry replied. "Why, what does it mean?"

"Well, you can't break an Unbreakable Vow…" Ron said uneasily.

"I'd worked that much out for myself, funnily enough," Harry said. "What happens if you break it, then?"

"You die," Liza said.

"Fred and George tried to get me to make one when I was about five," Ron said. "I nearly did too, I was holding hands with Fred and everything when Dad found us. He went mental. Only time I've ever seen Dad as angry as Mum. Fred reckons his left buttock has never been the same since."

"Yeah, well, passing over Fred's left buttock—" Harry said.

"I beg your pardon?" Fred had entered the kitchen, followed by George. Liza smiled at them, put her knife down, and gave them each hugs. When she stepped away from George, Fred went on, "Aaah, George, look at this. They're using knives and everything. Bless them."

"I'll be seventeen in two and a bit months' time," Ron grumbled, "and then I'll be able to do it by magic!" George sat down at the table and put his feet up.

"But meanwhile, we can enjoy watching you demonstrate the correct use of a—whoops-a-daisy!" George said. Ron gasped as the knife slipped in his hand and cut his thumb.

"You made me do that!" Ron said, putting his thumb to his mouth to suck on the cut. "You wait, when I'm seventeen—"

"I'm sure you'll dazzle us all with hitherto unsuspected magical skills," Fred said.

"And speaking of hitherto unsuspected skills, Ronald," George continued, "what is this we hear from Ginny and Liza about you and a young lady called—unless our information is faulty—Lavender Brown?"

"Hey," Liza pouted. "I always give you the best information." George winked at her.

"Mind your own business," Ron said, his cheeks turning a bit pink as he turned back to the sprouts.

"What a snappy retort," Fred said. "I really don't know how you think of them. No, what we wanted to know what…how did it happen?"

"What d'you mean?" Ron asked.

"Did she have an accident or something?" Fred asked.

"What?" Ron said.

"Well, how did she sustain such extensive brain damage?" Fred asked. "Careful now!"

Ron had thrown his sprout knife at his brother, who waved his wand and turned it into a paper airplane. Mrs. Weasley entered the room, witnessing the event.

" _Ron_!" she snapped. "Don't you ever let me see you throwing knives again!"

"I won't," Ron said, turning back to the sprouts and mumbling under his breath, "let you see."

"Fred, George, I'm sorry, dears, but Remus is arriving tonight, so Bill will have to squeeze in with you two," Mrs. Weasley said.

"No problem," George said.

"Then, as Charlie isn't coming home, that just leaves Harry and Ron in the attic, and if Fleur shares with Ginny—"

"—that'll make Ginny's Christmas—" Fred whispered.

"—everyone should be comfortable," Mrs. Weasley finished. "Well, they'll have a bed, anyway."

"Percy definitely not showing his ugly face, then?" Fred asked.

"No, he's busy, I expect, at the Ministry," Mrs. Weasley replied, turning away from her children. She bustled out of the kitchen.

"Or he's the world's biggest prat," Fred supplied. "One of the two. Well, let's get going, then, George."

"What are you two up to?" Ron asked. "Can't you help us with these sprouts? You could just use your wand and then we'll be free too!"

"No, I don't think we can do that," Fred said. "It's very character-building stuff, learning to peel sprouts without magic, makes you appreciate how difficult it is for Muggles and Squibs—"

"—and if you want people to help you, Ron," George cut in, tossing the paper airplane at his younger brother, "I wouldn't chuck knives at them. Just a little hint. We're off to the village, there's a very pretty girl working in the paper shop who thinks my card tricks are something marvelous…almost like real magic… Liza, do you want to come?"

"I think I'll pass," Liza said. "Gotta supervise these two while they're wielding knives, you know. Also Dumbledore told us not to go wandering off since we can't do magic outside of school yet."

Fred and George left then, and Liza, Ron, and Harry could see them out the window tramping through the snow.

"Gits," Ron said. "Would've only taken them ten seconds and then we could've been doing something more worthwhile, too." He went back to his sprouts, picking up a new knife since the one he'd been using was still a paper plane. "Are you going to tell Dumbledore what you heard Snape and Malfoy saying to each other?"

"Yep," Harry said. "I'm going to tell anyone who can put a stop to it, and Dumbledore's top of the list. I might have another word with your dad, too."

"It's too bad you didn't hear what Malfoy's actually doing, though," Liza said.

"I couldn't have done, could I?" Harry pointed out. "That was the whole point, he was refusing to tell Snape."

"Speaking of Malfoy, John was telling me last night that he's been super distracted lately," Liza said. "Apparently he hasn't been doing his schoolwork."

"That's what McGonagall said when she told us he was in detention, remember?" Harry said. "That he hadn't completed his homework. Did John say anything else?"

"Just that Malfoy hadn't really been interested in being part of the Slug Club," Liza replied. "It's odd that he was so eager to join the party when he hasn't cared much in the past."

"It's not like he and John are best mates anymore, though, are they?" Ron said. Liza glanced over at him.

"That doesn't mean that John hasn't noticed that Malfoy's been acting strangely," she said.

"I guess so," Ron said. There was silence for a moment before Ron continued, "'Course, you know what they'll all say? Dad and Dumbledore and all of them? They'll say Snape isn't really trying to help Malfoy, he was just trying to find out what Malfoy's up to."

"They didn't hear him," Harry said. "No one's that good an actor, not even Snape."

"But Harry, you're pretty biased, you have to admit," Liza said. "They all know that you don't like Malfoy or Snape."

"You think I'm right, though?" Harry asked, looking between Ron and Liza.

"Yeah, I do!" Ron answered. "Seriously, I do!"

"You might be on to something," Liza said. "But they all think that Snape's a part of the Order, don't they?"

"But Malfoy's definitely up to something," Harry said. "Right?"

"It seems that way," Liza agreed, while Ron nodded.

A few hours later, Liza's parents arrived at the Burrow. They both enveloped Liza in crushing hugs, saying how much they had missed her since she'd been away at school. They seemed a bit more enthusiastic that Liza had expected, but she knew they had been worried about her safety.

When Liza went back to her parents' new house, she found it very odd. This would be the first Christmas since she'd started at Hogwarts that she was spending with them. The first four Christmases, she'd stayed at Hogwarts, and the year before she'd been with the Weasleys, Harry, and Sirius.

After bidding Dan and Sue goodnight, Liza went into the unfamiliar bedroom with her old bed. Her trunk was already there, along with Boots and Orion. Liza got into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. Boots and Orion cuddled up next to her, and she quickly fell asleep.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

As Liza had speculated, she spent many of next couple of days at the Burrow. She joined Ginny in decorating the Burrow for Christmas. Mrs. Weasley was grateful for the help. When Liza wasn't helping around the house, she spent time with Fred and George, who she missed not having around at Hogwarts.

Christmas Eve found the Weasleys and their guests (Fleur, Liza, Harry, Lupin, Dan, and Sue) sitting around the living room. Mrs. Weasley was having them all listen to her favorite singer, Celestina Warbeck, as she sang Christmas songs. Fleur didn't seem to like this plan, and she kept talking loudly over the radio. Mrs. Weasley continued to increase the radio's volume with her wand.

Liza was sitting on the floor playing a game of Exploding Snap with Fred, George, and Ginny. Ron and Harry were sitting next to each other, watching the card game. Bill and Fleur were sitting together in a corner. Lupin, who had arrived the same day as the Hogwarts students, sat in a chair by the fireplace. He was looking thinner and more ragged than Liza had ever remembered seeing him. Dan and Sue were sitting next to Mrs. Weasley.

"We danced to this when we were eighteen!" Mrs. Weasley said, pausing her knitting as Celestina continued to sing. "Do you remember, Arthur?"

"Mphf?" Mr. Weasley said, shaking himself awake. "Oh yes…marvelous time…"

Liza and Ginny beat Fred and George in Exploding Snap two more times before the radio show was over. Mrs. Weasley clapped enthusiastically.

"Eez eet over?" Fleur asked. "Thank goodness, what an 'orrible—"

"Shall we have a nightcap, then?" Mr. Weasley asked. "Who wants eggnog?" Liza stretched her arms over her head before getting up and moving to sit next to Lupin.

"What have you been up to lately?" she asked him. Harry leaned in to listen.

"Oh, I've been underground," Lupin replied. "Almost literally. That's why I haven't been able to write; sending letters to anyone would have been something of a giveaway."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"I've been living among my fellows, my equals," Lupin replied. Liza and Harry frowned in confusion, and he added, "Werewolves. Nearly all of them are on Voldemort's side. Dumbledore wanted a spy and here I was…ready-made." He paused, realizing how bitter he sounded, before smiling and continuing, "I am not complaining; it is necessary work and who can do it better than I? However, it has been difficult gaining their trust. I bear the unmistakable signs of having tried to live among wizards, you see, whereas they have shunned normal society and live on the margins, stealing—and sometimes killing—to eat."

"How come they like Voldemort?" Liza asked.

"They think that, under his rule, they will have a better life," Lupin said. "And it is hard to argue with Greyback out there…."

"Who's Greyback?" Harry asked.

"You haven't heard of him?" Lupin said. "Fenrir Greyback is, perhaps, the most savage werewolf alive today. He regards it as his mission in life to bite and to contaminate as many people as possible; he wants to create enough werewolves to overcome the wizards. Voldemort has promised him prey in return for his services. Greyback specializes in children… Bite them young, he says, and raise them away from their parents, raise them to hate normal wizards. Voldemort has threatened to unleash him upon people's sons and daughters; it is a threat that usually produces good results."

"That's horrible," Liza breathed.

"It was Greyback who bit me," Lupin said quietly.

"What?" Harry asked. "When—when you were a kid, you mean?"

"Yes," Lupin answered. "My father had offended him. I did not know, for a very long time, the identity of the werewolf who had attacked me; I even felt pity for him, thinking that he had had no control, knowing by then how it felt to transform. But Greyback is not like that. At the full moon, he positions himself close to victims, ensuring that he is near enough to strike. He plans it all. And this is the man Voldemort is using to marshal the werewolves. I cannot pretend that my particular brand of reasoned argument is making much headway against Greyback's insistence that we werewolves deserve blood, that we ought to revenge ourselves on normal people."

"But you are normal!" Harry said. "You've just got a—a problem—" Lupin laughed.

"Sometimes you remind me a lot of James," he said. "He called it my 'furry little problem' in company. Many people were under the impression that I owned a badly behaved rabbit."

Mr. Weasley came around, passing out mugs of eggnog. Liza took one, thanking him, before turning back to Lupin and Harry.

"Have you ever heard of someone called the Half-Blood Prince?" Harry asked.

"The Half-Blood what?" Lupin repeated.

"Prince," Harry said again.

"There are no Wizarding princes," Lupin said. "Is this a title you're thinking of adopting? I should have thought being 'the Chosen One' would be enough."

"It's nothing to do with me!" Harry said as Liza laughed. "The Half-Blood Prince is someone who used to go to Hogwarts, I've got his old Potions book. He wrote spells all over it, spells he invented. One of them was Levicorpus—"

"Oh, that one had a great vogue during my time at Hogwarts," Lupin said. There was a gleam in his eye as he reminisced about his Hogwarts days. "There were a few months in my fifth year when you couldn't move for being hoisted into the air by your ankle."

"My dad used it," Harry said. "I saw him in the Pensieve, he used it on Snape."

"Yes," Lupin said, "but he wasn't the only one. As I say, it was very popular… You know how these spells come and go…"

"But it sounds like it was invented while you were at school," Harry insisted.

"Not necessarily," Lupin said. "Jinxes go in and out of fashion like everything else." He studied Harry's face for a moment before adding, "James was a pureblood, Harry, and I promise you, he never asked us to call him 'Prince.'"

"And it wasn't Sirius? Or you?" Harry asked.

"Definitely not," Lupin answered.

"Oh," Harry said. "I just thought—well, he's helped me out a lot in Potions classes, the Prince has."

"How old is this book, Harry?" Lupin asked.

"I dunno, I've never checked," Harry replied.

"Well, perhaps that will give you some clue as to when the Prince was in Hogwarts," Lupin said.

A few minutes later, Fleur started to sing in mock-imitation of Celestina. Mrs. Weasley looked about ready to burst, so everyone jumped up to say their 'good night's. Liza, Sue, and Dan said their farewells before going out into the Weasleys' garden. Then Liza grabbed onto Dan's arm tight and they Apparated back to their own home.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning Liza awoke to find a pile of presents at the foot of her bed. She was surprised by the amount of presents that she'd received, but after the shock wore off she quickly opened her packages. As she was tearing into her final present—the usual sweater from Mrs. Weasley—she felt a pang of sadness; she missed opening a present from Sirius. At this time the year before, she had been at Grimmauld Place with him.

When she was finished with the presents, she got ready for the day. She made sure to grab her new purple sweater that Mrs. Weasley had knitted before heading downstairs and into the kitchen.

"Morning, Mom," Liza said, kissing Sue on the head. "I'm going to head over to the Burrow now."

"We'll see you over there for dinner," Sue replied, smiling at her daughter. Liza grinned back before pulling the sweater over her head and stepping over to the fireplace.

A few seconds later, Liza was spinning into the kitchen of the Burrow.

"Good morning, Mrs. Weasley," she said brightly. Mrs. Weasley turned and smiled warmly at Liza.

"Good morning, dear," she replied. "I think everyone is still up in their beds, if you'd like to run upstairs."

"Yeah, I'll do that," Liza said. "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley." She left the kitchen and started up the stairs. She climbed up them until she had reached Ginny's room, where she knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" a voice called.

"Santa Claus," Liza deadpanned. The door opened and Ginny stood in the doorway, one eyebrow raised.

"You don't look red and jolly to me," she commented. "Come in, Phlegm's not here, thank Merlin." Liza stepped across the threshold and plopped down onto Ginny's bed.

"Get anything good for Christmas?" Liza asked.

"Look what Dean sent me," Ginny replied flatly, holding over a box. Liza looked inside to a bottle of perfume.

"Well, that's thoughtful," Liza said. Ginny grunted her disapproval, tossing the box carelessly onto her dresser.

"Perfume," she complained. "He's buying me perfume for Christmas? It's like the boy doesn't know me at all."

"He probably thought that that's what he's supposed to buy you," Liza reasoned. "Did you tell him that you wanted something else?"

"No," Ginny admitted. "We haven't—we haven't exactly been clicking so well lately. It's starting to become a bit of a chore, dating him. Dating someone should be easy, shouldn't it?"

"I don't know if 'easy' is the right word," Liza said thoughtfully. "It shouldn't be unpleasant, though. So are you going to break up with him?"

"No," Ginny sighed. "I think that we just need to find something to bring the spark back, you know? I'll probably give it a little longer, see if things get better. What did John get you?"

"Another charm for my bracelet," Liza said, holding her arm out so that Ginny could get a look at the new addition. A shiny silver J was hanging next to the E that he'd given her over three years ago.

"So things are going well between the two of you," Ginny guessed.

"Yeah," Liza said, a faint smile on her lips. "It's been nice, hanging out with him again. It's a nice break from all the drama happening between Hermione and Ron."

"You know, I don't know what she sees in him," Ginny said, shaking her head.

"That's because you're his sister," Liza pointed out.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Christmas dinner arrived, and everyone piled into the kitchen at the Burrow. Dan and Sue had shown up, as well, so there were thirteen of them packed in around the table. Nearly everyone was wearing a new Weasley sweater, except for Fleur, who may have either chosen not to wear it or hadn't received one; Liza wasn't sure which was true.

They all ate a lot, and were having quite a nice time. Mrs. Weasley was sporting a brand new witch's hat and a beautiful golden necklace. Sue eventually asked her about them.

"Fred and George gave them to me!" Mrs. Weasley explained, beaming. "Aren't they beautiful?"

"Well, we find we appreciate you more and more, Mum, now we're washing our own socks," George said. "Parsnips, Remus?"

"Harry, you've got a maggot in your hair," Ginny said, reaching over and pulling it out.

"Why do you have a maggot in your hair?" Liza asked, a bit alarmed.

"Kreacher sent them to me," Harry told her.

"'Ow 'orrible," Fleur said.

"Yes, isn't it?" Ron said. "Gravy, Fleur?" He proceeded to knock the gravy boat over, and Bill fixed the spill with a wave of his wand.

"You are as bad as zat Tonks," Fleur commented. "She is always knocking—"

"I invited _dear_ Tonks to come along today," Mrs. Weasley cut in. "But she wouldn't come. Have you spoken to her lately, Remus?"

"No, I haven't been in contact with anybody very much," Lupin replied. "But Tonks has got her own family to go to, hasn't she?"

"Hmmm," Mrs. Weasley hummed. "Maybe. I got the impression she was planning to spend Christmas alone, actually." She was giving Lupin a rather pointed look, but Liza wasn't sure why Mrs. Weasley would look at Lupin like that.

"Tonks's Patronus has changed its form," Harry said, looking at Lupin. "Snape said so anyway. I didn't know that could happen. Why would your Patronus change?"

"Sometimes…a great shock…an emotional upheaval…" Lupin said slowly.

"Arthur!" Mrs. Weasley cried, standing up suddenly. She pressed her hand against her chest. "Arthur—it's Percy!"

" _What_?" more than one person at the table gasped. Everyone turned to the window Mrs. Weasley was staring out of. Liza craned her head to see Percy Weasley walking across the yard, with another wizard in tow.

"Arthur, he's—he's with the Minister!" Mrs. Weasley said.

A few moments later, the door in the kitchen opened and Percy stood there. Nobody spoke for a few seconds.

"Merry Christmas, Mother," Percy finally said.

"Oh, _Percy_!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed, throwing her arms around her son. Percy looked rather conflicted. The Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour stepped into the room behind Percy.

"You must forgive this intrusion," he apologized to Mrs. Weasley. "Percy and I were in the vicinity—working, you know—and he couldn't resist dropping in and seeing you all."

Percy didn't look as though he had wanted to drop in and see them all, however. He refused to look his father, brothers, or sister in the eye. Liza glanced at Fred and George, who were suddenly looking very protective of everyone in the room.

"Please, come in, sit down, Minister!" Mrs. Weasley said. "Have a little purkey, or some tooding… I mean—"

"No, no, my dear Molly," Scrimgeour said. "I don't want to intrude, wouldn't be here at all if Percy hadn't wanted to see you all so badly…"

"Oh, Perce!" Mrs. Weasley said.

"…We've only looked in for five minutes, so I'll have a stroll around the yard while you catch up with Percy," Scrimgeour continued. "No, no, I assure you I don't want to butt in! Well, if anybody cared to show me your charming garden… Ah, that young man's finished, why doesn't he take a stroll with me?"

Liza scoffed quietly as Scrimgeour looked expectantly at Harry. Of _course_ the minister was only here to see Harry.

"Yeah, all right," Harry agreed, standing up. Lupin started to stand as well, but Harry said, "It's fine. Fine," he repeated once more as Mr. Weasley opened his mouth.

"Wonderful!" Scrimgeour said. Harry walked passed him and out into the garden. "We'll just take a turn around the garden, and Percy and I'll be off. Carry on, everyone!" He turned and followed Harry out, shutting the door behind him.

"Oh, Percy, why don't you sit down?" Mrs. Weasley said, gesturing to the table. "We have some turkey left over, and some parsnips, as well, look—"

"No, thank you, Mother," Percy replied stiffly. Mrs. Weasley's face fell.

"Stop being such a giant prat and just sit down for a few minutes," Fred said, glaring at his brother. "It won't kill you."

"Now, now, Fred, I'm sure he's just busy—" Mrs. Weasley said.

"Not while his boss is standing out in the garden with Harry, he isn't," George said.

"Yeah, isn't there something you'd like to say to all of us?" Ginny added. "Especially to Dad?" Mr. Weasley and Bill continued to observe Percy without saying anything.

"Nothing I can think of," Percy hissed, his stiffness cracking somewhat under the pressure from his younger siblings.

"Stop it," Mrs. Weasley said sharply. "It's Christmas, and we should be celebrating the fact that Percy wanted to drop by and see all of us—"

"Don't fool yourself, Mum," Fred said darkly. "He's not here to see us. The minister just wanted an excuse to talk to Harry."

" _Enough_ ," Mrs. Weasley said. "Percy, are you sure you won't have anything to eat? We have plenty of leftovers."

"I'll be okay, Mother," Percy said. He glanced out the window anxiously.

"See, look at him," Ginny sneered. "The Ministry was wrong the whole time, and yet he can't even apologize."

"I have nothing to apologize for," Percy snapped, turning his head sharply. "I made a choice to stay loyal to the Ministry, and there is no dishonor in that."

"You turned your back on your family!" George exclaimed. "Your family who has loved you even when you were being a pompous toad!"

"ENOUGH!" Mrs. Weasley shouted, looking close to tears.

"No, Mum, we won't stop until he gives you and Dad the proper apology you deserve!" Fred argued.

"I have heard enough," Percy said, turning away from his family. "You obviously still have growing up to do—"

"Say that to my face," George growled as he and his twin stood up.

"Boys—" Mr. Weasley finally spoke, warning in his tone. Percy glanced over to his brothers.

"There is nothing wrong with standing loyal with the Ministry," he stated. "I do not regret my actions or choices."

Many things happened at once. The back door opened as Harry reentered the kitchen just as Fred, George, and Ginny all threw handfuls of mashed parsnips into Percy's face. Percy took a few steps back, stunned, as the food rained down on him. He let out a frustrated noise, turned on his heel, and stomped out of the house.

"Thank you for showing your ugly mug for Christmas!" Fred shouted after him. "We've been wanting to do that for quite some time!"

"Boys, that's quite enough!" Mr. Weasley thundered, standing up. He went to his wife, who had tears falling down her face. Liza looked to Harry, who motioned to her and Ron that they should follow him out of the room.

"What's up, Harry?" Ron asked when they went into the sitting room.

"Scrimgeour wants me to be the Ministry's poster boy," Harry said at once. "He wants to give the Wizarding world the idea that I'm helping the Ministry defeat Voldemort, whether I'm 'the Chosen One' or not."

"After everything the Ministry put you through last year," Liza said slowly, "he thinks you'd be willing to help them out?"

"Apparently," Harry said, shrugging. "And then he asked me what Dumbledore was up to, and when I wouldn't tell him, he accused me of being 'Dumbledore's man through and through.'"

"What did you say to that?" Ron asked.

"I told him I was," Harry replied. There was a moment of silence.

"Well," Ron spoke up, "you can't say this wasn't an interesting Christmas."

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	14. Chapter 14 The 3 Ds

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 14 - Destination, Determination, Deliberation**

The holidays drew to a close, and before they knew it, Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Liza were standing in the kitchen of the Burrow with their trunks repacked. Liza had said her farewells to her parents before arriving at the Burrow, and Mrs. Weasley was the only one present to say goodbye to the four students. Fred and George had returned to their store the day before, and Mr. Weasley, Bill, and Fleur were all at work, as well.

"Don't cry, Mum," Ginny said when Mrs. Weasley became teary. "It's okay…"

"Yeah, don't worry about us," Ron said, "or about Percy. He's such a prat, it's not really a loss, is it?" Mrs. Weasley hugged them all in turn, her sobs growing as she went down the line. She reached Harry last.

"Promise me you'll look after yourself," she said to him. "Stay out of trouble…"

"I always do, Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied. "I like the quiet life, you know me." Mrs. Weasley giggled as she stepped away from them.

"Be good, then, all of you…" she said. They all nodded their agreement and turned to the fire.

Harry stepped into the flames first, stating firmly, "Hogwarts!" He vanished with a whoosh. Liza stepped in next, giving Mrs. Weasley an encouraging smile before Flooing away, as well.

"Good evening, Miss Jones," Professor McGonagall said as Liza stumbled into her office.

"Hello, Professor," Liza greeted, stepping over to where Harry was waiting. A few minutes later, Ron and Ginny had both appeared, as well, and the four of them headed off to the common room.

"Baubles," Ron said to the Fat Lady when they reached her portrait.

"No," she said, wincing slightly. She looked paler than she normally did.

"What d'you mean, 'no'?" Ron demanded.

"There is a new password," the Fat Lady replied. "And please don't shout."

"We're not shouting," Liza reasoned. "And we've been gone, how're we supposed to—?"

"Harry! Liza! Ginny!" a voice called. They turned to see Hermione coming down the hallway, wearing her winter things.

"Hi, Hermione," Liza said, smiling.

"I got back a couple of hours ago," Hermione explained. "I've just been down to visit Hagrid and Buck—I mean Witherwings. Did you have a good Christmas?"

"Yeah," Ron answered, "pretty eventful, Rufus Scrim—"

"I've got something for you two," Hermione continued, looking at Harry and Liza and ignoring Ron. "Oh, hang on—password. _Abstinence_."

"Precisely," the Fat Lady said, swinging forward.

"What's up with her?" Harry asked.

"Overindulged over Christmas, apparently," Hermione replied, leading the way into the common room. "She and her friend Violet drank their way through all the wine in that picture of drunk monks down by the Charms corridor. Anyway…" She pulled two scrolls from her pocket and handed them over to Harry and Liza. Liza opened hers and saw that her next lesson with Dumbledore would be on Tuesday.

"Great," Harry said after reading through his note, which was also from Dumbledore. "I've got loads to tell him—and you. Let's sit down—"

"Won-Won!" Lavender Brown rushed past them and threw herself at Ron. Liza wrinkled her nose as Lavender and Ron began snogging in the middle of the room.

"There's a table over here," Hermione said, looking unconcerned. "Coming, Ginny?"

"No, thanks, I said I'd meet Dean," Ginny replied. She gave Liza a significant look, and Liza shrugged. Then Liza followed Harry and Hermione over to the empty table.

"So how was your Christmas?" Harry asked Hermione as they sat down.

"Oh, fine," Hermione replied. "Nothing special. How was it at Won-Won's?"

"I'll tell you in a minute," Harry said. "Look, Hermione, can't you—?"

"No, I can't," she stopped him. "So don't even ask.

"I thought maybe, you know, over Christmas—" Harry said.

"It was the Fat Lady who drank a vat of five-hundred-year-old wine, Harry, not me," Hermione replied impatiently. "So what was this important news you wanted to tell me?"

Liza sat back as she listened to Harry recount what he'd overheard between Snape and Malfoy during Slughorn's party. Hermione frowned as she took in all that he had to tell her. When he was finished, she was quiet for a moment.

"Don't you think—?" she began.

"—he was pretending to offer help so that he could trick Malfoy into telling him what he's doing?" Harry finished for her.

"Well, yes," Hermione said.

"Ron's dad and Lupin think so," Harry said. "But this definitely proves Malfoy's planning something, you can't deny that."

"No, I can't," Hermione agreed.

"And he's acting on Voldemort's orders, just like I said!" Harry added.

"Hmm…did either of them actually mention Voldemort's name?" Hermione asked.

"I'm not sure…" Harry answered. "Snape definitely said 'your master,' and who else would that be?"

"I don't know," Hermione said. "Maybe his father?"

"How could he be following orders from his father while he's locked up in Azkaban?" Liza pointed out. Hermione shrugged.

"How's Lupin?" she asked.

"Not great," Liza said. She told Hermione what Lupin had said about his mission with the werewolves.

"Have you heard of this Fenrir Greyback?" Harry asked Hermione when Liza was finished.

"Yes, I have!" Hermione said. "And so have you, Harry!"

"When, History of Magic?" Harry asked. "You know full well I never listened…"

"No, no, not History of Magic—Malfoy threatened Borgin with him!" Hermione said. "Back in Knockturn Alley, don't you remember? He told Borgin that Greyback was an old family friend and that he'd be checking up on Borgin's progress!"

"I forgot!" Harry said. "But this _proves_ Malfoy's a Death Eater, how else could he be in contact with Greyback and telling him what to do?"

"It is pretty suspicious," Liza agreed.

"Unless…" Hermione said.

"Oh, come on," Harry groaned, "you can't get round this one!"

"Well…there is the possibility it was an empty threat," Hermione reasoned.

"You're unbelievable, you are," Harry said. "We'll see who's right… You'll be eating your words, Hermione, just like the Ministry. Oh yeah, I had a row with Rufus Scrimgeour as well…"

For the rest of the night, Harry, Liza, and Hermione talked scathingly about the Ministry. Hermione agreed that it was ridiculous that the Ministry would ask Harry to be their poster boy after everything he went through the year before.

After a few hours, the three of them went up to bed. Liza settled down into her four-poster, glad to be back at Hogwarts.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The following morning, Liza and Hermione saw that a new sign had been posted to the House notice board over night.

 _Apparition Lessons_

 _If you are seventeen years of age, or will turn seventeen on or before the 31_ _st_ _August next, you are eligible for a twelve-week course of Apparition Lessons from a Ministry of Magic Apparition instructor. Please sign below if you would like to participate. Cost: 12 galleons._

Liza and Hermione hurriedly signed their names to the list. Then as Ron, who was behind them, stepped forward to sign up, Lavender caught up to him, put her hands over his eyes, and said, "Guess who, Won-Won?"

Hermione hurried off, and Liza and Harry sped up to stay with her. They were both growing tired of Lavender's and Ron's relationship. But surprisingly, Ron caught up with them only a few moments later. Hermione picked up her pace again so that she wasn't walking with them, but Harry and Liza stayed with Ron.

"So—Apparition," Ron said, clearly not wanting to talk about Lavender. "Should be a laugh, eh?"

"I dunno," Harry said. "Maybe it's better when you do it yourself. I didn't enjoy it much when Dumbledore took me along for the ride."

"Yeah," Liza agreed. "Kinda made you feel sick the first few times, didn't it? It gets better as you do it more often." She had gotten used to Side-Along Apparition with her parents.

"I forgot you two'd already done it," Ron said. "I'd better pass my test first time. Fred and George did."

"Charlie failed, though, didn't he?" Liza asked.

"Yeah, but Charlie's bigger than me," Ron insisted, "so Fred and George didn't go on about it much…not to his face anyway…"

"When can we take the actual test?" Harry asked.

"Soon as we're seventeen," Ron answered. "That's only March for me!"

"Yeah, but you wouldn't be able to Apparate in here, not in the castle…" Liza said, smirking a bit.

"Not the point, is it?" Ron shot back. "Everyone would know I _could_ Apparate if I wanted."

For the rest of the day, the sixth years talked about the Apparition training. In Charms, Ron told the other Gryffindors that Harry and Liza had already done Side-Along Apparition. The two of them were bombarded by questions all afternoon and into the evening.

"You're lucky," Sally-Anne said after Liza had told her what Apparition had felt like. "Maybe it'll be easier for you since you've kind of done it before."

"All I did was hold onto someone's arm for dear life," Liza said. "They all made Apparition seem so simple, though. All they did was turn on their feet and then it was happening."

"Well, we'll find out soon," Sally-Anne said. "I can't wait to try."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Monday night, Harry had his lesson with Dumbledore. The next day, Harry, Liza, and Hermione stood in a snowy courtyard during break while Harry told the girls what Dumbledore had shown him.

"I almost feel bad for Morfin," Liza said when Harry had finished telling them about the memory of Voldemort trying to find his grandfather.

"There's more," Harry said before telling them about the short memory Dumbledore had acquired from Slughorn. He explained to the girls that the memory had been tampered with, and Dumbledore had given Harry the job of retrieving the original version.

"He must be determined to hide what really happened if Dumbledore couldn't get it out of him," Hermione said. "Horcruxes… _Horcruxes_ … I've never even heard of them…"

"You haven't?" Harry asked.

"They must be really advanced Dark Magic, or why would Voldemort have wanted to know about them?" Hermione guessed. "I think it's going to be difficult to get the information, Harry, you'll have to be very careful about how you approach Slughorn, think out a strategy…"

"Ron reckons I should just hang back after Potions this afternoon…" Harry said.

"Oh, well, if _Won-Won_ thinks that, you'd better do it," Hermione said savagely. "After all, when has _Won-Won's_ judgment ever been faulty?"

"Hermione, can't you—?" Harry began.

" _No_!" Hermione snapped before stomping away through the snow. Harry looked around at Liza.

"Don't worry about her," Liza said before Harry could speak. "This will all blow over eventually."

"I would like 'eventually' to be tomorrow, then," Harry grumbled, and he and Liza made their way back into the castle.

That evening, as Liza was about to leave the common room for Dumbledore's office, Harry came up to her.

"I tried to talk to Slughorn after Potions," he said. "Turns out Hermione's right, this is going to take some more thought."

"I'm not surprised," Liza said. "Like she said, even Dumbledore couldn't get the true memory out of him. But I'm sure you'll think of something; you don't have much choice, do you?"

"Right," Harry said.

"Have you told Ron and Hermione about this yet?" Liza asked.

"Yeah," Harry replied. "In class we were supposed to come up with an antidote to a bunch of poisons, and I grabbed a bezoar instead of doing the work."

"Risky," Liza commented.

"Well, Slughorn thought it was brilliant," Harry said. "I hoped that that meant he'd be easy to talk to, but no. Anyway, Hermione and Ron are both a bit miffed at me for that stunt."

"Again, I'm not surprised," Liza said. "Listen, I have to get to Dumbledore's. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah," Harry said. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Liza said with a smile, and she left the common room. She trudged through the halls to the gargoyle guarding the head's office, gave the password, and rode the moving stairs to the top.

"Good evening, Liza," Dumbledore said as Liza entered the office. Then, without warning, Liza could feel something attempting to enter her mind. She quickly imagined a door shutting the force out before casting a silent Shield Charm.

"Very good," Dumbledore said, nodding. "I see you're beginning to master nonverbal spells, as well."

"Mostly just the ones I've known how to do for a long time," Liza said, taking a seat across from Dumbledore's desk.

"Well, seeing as you were able to stop me so easily, I think we'll work on something else tonight," Dumbledore said. "I think it's important for you to learn some basic concealment charms. Let us begin…"

For the rest of the lesson, Dumbledore taught Liza all kinds of different spells that would be able to conceal both things and people. When Liza was finally casting a convincing Disillusionment Charm, Dumbledore brought the lesson to an end.

"Professor, can I ask you something?" Liza said before Dumbledore had a chance to dismiss her.

"Of course," Dumbledore replied, nodding once.

"At the end of our last lesson, you said that the Muggleborns would need protecting," Liza said, "and that I would know what to do when the time comes. I guess I just want to know what you meant by that."

"There are things in motion now that cannot be stopped," Dumbledore said. "You and Harry will both be placed in a difficult situation, but I know that between the two of you, you can help to stop Voldemort and his forces."

"But we're just kids," Liza said doubtfully. "What can a couple of sixteen year-olds do against one of the most powerful wizards in the world?"

"As I said before, when the time comes, you'll know what to do," Dumbledore said. "I cannot tell you more at this time. Just stick close to Harry. Things will make sense soon."

"Okay," Liza said resignedly. She knew she had to trust Dumbledore. "Well, good night Professor."

"Good night, Liza," Dumbledore replied.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

Over breakfast the next morning, Harry confided in Liza about his plans for Slughorn. He had decided that he was going to leave Slughorn alone so that the Potions professor would think that Harry had forgotten all about the Horcruxes. Liza agreed that it would be in Harry's best interest to make sure that he was Slughorn's favorite again.

Hermione, meanwhile, had scoured the library, trying to find out what Horcruxes were.

"I haven't found one single explanation of what Horcruxes do!" Hermione raged one day. "Not a single one! I've been right through the restricted section and even in the most _horrible_ books, where they tell you how to brew the most _gruesome_ potions—nothing! All I could find was this, in the introduction to _Magick Moste Evile_ —listen—'Of the Horcrux, wickedest of magical inventions, we shall not speak nor give direction…' I mean, why mention it then?" She snapped the book shut, causing the book to let out a wail. "Oh, shut up," she added, putting it back in her bag.

January melted into February. The snow was melting, but the grounds remained wet and muddy. There was a constant chill in the air.

The sixth years, however, were excited. On the first Saturday in February was the first scheduled Apparition lesson.

That morning after breakfast, the sixth years gathered in the Great Hall. The four House tables had vanished, and the four Heads of Houses—Professors McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, and Snape—were standing at the front of the room with a short Ministry wizard.

When the last of the students had entered the room, the Heads called for quiet and the Ministry wizard stepped forward.

"Good morning," he said. "My name is Wilkie Twycross and I shall be your Ministry Apparition instructor for the next twelve weeks. I hope to be able to prepare you for your Apparition Tests in this time—"

"Malfoy, be quiet and pay attention!" Professor McGonagall interrupted. Everyone turned their heads to look at Malfoy, who had been whispering with Crabbe.

"—by which time, many of you may be ready to take your tests," Twycross went on when the attention was back on him. "As you may know, it is usually impossible to Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts. The headmaster has lifted this enchantment, purely within the Great Hall, for one hour, so as to enable you to practice. May I emphasize that you will not be able to Apparate outside the walls of this Hall, and that you would be unwise to try.

"I would like each of you to place yourselves now so that you have a clear five feet of space in front of you," he instructed.

The students began to move at once, trying to stand near their friends but also have enough space between themselves. There was a gentle tug on Liza's ponytail, and she turned to see John smiling at her. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Harry moving away.

"Harry, where are you going?" she asked as he pushed through the crowd. But before she could call after him again, Professor McGonagall came over to them and made sure there was enough room between them.

A few minutes later, the Heads yelled, "Quiet!" and everyone fell silent.

"Thank you," Twycross began. "Now then…" He waved his wand, and a hoop appeared on the floor in front of every student. "The important things to remember when Apparating are the three D's! Destination, Determination, Deliberation!" Liza stood on her tiptoes to find where Harry had gone.

"Step one: Fix your mind firmly upon the desired _destination_ ," Twycross continued. "In this case, the interior of your hoop. Kindly concentrate upon that destination now." Liza reluctantly pulled her eyes away from the crowd and looked down at the hoop on the floor.

"Step two," Twycross went on, "focus your _determination_ to occupy the visualized space! Let your yearning to enter it flood from your mind to every particle of your body!" Liza repressed a snort at the Ministry official's wording.

"Step three," Twycross said, "and only when I give the command… Turn on the spot, feeling your way into nothingness, moving with _deliberation_! On my command, now…one—two—THREE!"

Liza spun, just as Twycross had instructed, and almost promptly fell to the floor. After she regained her balance, she glanced around the Hall to see that everyone else was in a similar position.

"Never mind, never mind," Twycross said. "Adjust your hoops, please, and back to your original positions…"

They tried a few more times before anything of significance happened. There was a terrified scream, and everyone turned to see Susan Bones, a Hufflepuff, standing in her hoop with her left leg still in its original position. The Heads hurried over to her, and a few seconds later she was restored to normal.

"Splinching, or the separation of random body parts, occurs when the mind is insufficiently _determined_ ," Twycross explained over the sound of Susan crying. "You must concentrate continuously upon your _destination_ , and move, without haste, but with _deliberation_ …thus." He spun on the spot and vanished. Then he reappeared on the other side of the room.

"Remember the three D's," he said as he walked back to the front of the room, "and try again…one—two—three—"

At the end of the hour, nobody had managed to Apparate. There were no more Splinching accidents, either, and Twycross looked completely unconcerned.

"Until next Saturday, everybody, and do not forget: _Destination. Determination. Deliberation_ ," he said before exiting the Great Hall with Professor McGonagall. Ron and Liza hurried to catch up with Harry, who they saw at the back of the room.

"How did you do?" Ron asked. "I think I felt something the last time I tried—a kind of tingling in my feet."

"I expect your trainers are too small, Won-Won," Hermione said as she passed them.

"I didn't feel anything," Harry said to Ron as they headed out of the Great Hall. "But I don't care about that now—"

"What d'you mean, you don't care?" Ron asked. "Don't you want to learn to Apparate?"

"I'm not fussed, really, I prefer flying," Harry replied. He sped up as they reached the marble staircase in the Entrance Hall. "Look, hurry up, will you, there's something I want to do…"

"Liza!" a voice called from behind them. Liza paused, but Harry and Ron continued on as though they hadn't seen her stop. Mentally shrugging, Liza turned back to where John was standing behind her.

"What's up?" Liza asked, smiling. John held his hand out towards her and she took it.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to go study in the library with me sometime today," John replied.

"Sounds good to me," Liza agreed. "After lunch, though, okay?"

"No problem," John said. "See you then." He pressed a kiss against her forehead and departed for the Slytherin common room.

"Liza and John, sitting in a tree," Sally-Anne sang, separating from a group of Hufflepuffs who had been standing nearby. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Ha ha," Liza said sarcastically, although she couldn't help the smile that grew on her face. "So what are you up to on this fine Saturday?"

"I was going to study with Oliver," Sally-Anne replied, and, to Liza's surprise, faint pink patches appeared on her friend's cheeks. Oliver Rivers was one of the Hufflepuffs who was in Muggle Studies with them.

"Well, well," Liza said, "what a coincidence. John and I were going to be studying later in the library. You two are free to join us, unless…" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"Maybe we'll see you there," Sally-Anne said loftily, definitely blushing now. Liza giggled, and the two girls trooped up the marble staircase.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The school year continued to move on quickly, and before Liza knew it, it was the first of March. Classes had continued as usual, and the sixth years were still having Saturday Apparition classes in the Great Hall. Nobody had managed to Apparate yet, but there had been a few more Splichings. Most of the class were not too fond of Twycross, and many of them came up with unpleasant nicknames for him using his three D's.

In the week leading up to the first, another sign had gone up on the notice board, stating that the next Hogsmeade trip was cancelled. It had originally been scheduled for the first, which was also Ron's birthday. He was upset when he saw the sign.

"It was on my birthday!" he complained. "I was looking forward to that!"

"Not a big surprise, though, is it?" Harry pointed out. "Not after what happened to Katie."

"Not to mention the steady flow of disappearances," Liza added. "They just want to keep us safe, Ron."

"But now all I've got to look forward to is stupid Apparition!" Ron grumbled. "Big birthday treat…"

On the morning of Ron's birthday, Liza and Hermione went down to the Great Hall for breakfast as usual.

"So did you get Ron a present?" Liza asked tentatively.

"No," Hermione replied.

"Hermione, come on—"

"No," Hermione repeated severely.

"He's one of your best friends," Liza said. "Don't try to deny that. This whole thing with Lavender will be over before you know it… I mean, did you see how upset she looked this morning?"

"Yes," Hermione replied slowly. "Do you think that had something to do with him?"

"I don't know, but it'll probably make you feel better to imagine that it was," Liza said. They continued their breakfast in silence for a few minutes when Professor McGonagall hurried over to them.

"Miss Granger, Miss Jones," she said, looking concerned, "I'm afraid there's been an accident. Mr. Weasley has been poisoned."

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	15. Chapter 15 Poisoned and Beat

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter isn't mine.**_

 **Chapter 15 – Poisoned and Beat**

Liza and Hermione were anxiously waiting outside the hospital wing with Ginny when Harry finally showed up.

"What happened?" the three girls demanded immediately.

"Ron was opening his birthday presents, and he accidentally got into the Cauldron Cakes that Romilda Vane gave to me," Harry began. "They had love potion in them, so I took Ron down to Slughorn's to get him an antidote. After he was cured, Slughorn poured us some mead that had poison in it. I managed to find a bezoar and got Ron to swallow it. That's when Slughorn went for help, and McGonagall and Pomfrey brought Ron up here."

Madam Pomfrey, the caretaker of the hospital wing, poked her head out into the hall.

"Madam Pomfrey, can we please come in and see Ron?" Ginny asked immediately.

"He needs rest," Madam Pomfrey replied. "You may see him in a few hours. Now move along." She went back into the ward and shut the door firmly behind her.

"I'm not going anywhere," Ginny said defiantly, glaring at the door.

"So why did Slughorn have a poisoned bottle of mead?" Liza asked, turning back to Harry. "You don't think he was trying to poison someone, do you?"

"Why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?" Harry said, frowning.

"Well, maybe he was trying to poison you," Liza reasoned.

"I don't think Slughorn would do that," Ginny said. "He _loves_ Harry. Harry's the jewel of his collection, after all." She smirked, and Liza let out a giggle. Harry scowled, his cheeks a bit pink.

"Slughorn did say that the mead was meant to be a gift," he said.

"A gift for who?" Liza asked sharply.

"Dumbledore," Harry replied. Liza and Ginny exchanged a thoughtful look. Hermione remained quiet, looking worried.

For the rest of the day, Harry, Liza, and Ginny speculated about the poison while Hermione stood beside them. Every time the hospital wing doors opened or closed, the four of them craned their heads to try and see Ron.

At about seven o'clock in the evening, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley arrived. Madam Pomfrey let them in immediately. They stayed by Ron's bedside for about half an hour before they came out again.

"We're going to go and meet with Dumbledore," Mr. Weasley explained. "I think Madam Pomfrey will let you in soon."

"Is he okay?" Ginny asked.

"He'll be just fine," Mr. Weasley assured his daughter while Mrs. Weasley dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief. "He just needs to rest some more. He's sleeping now." Then he and his wife excused themselves to meet with Dumbledore.

At eight o'clock, Madam Pomfrey finally opened the doors and let the four students in to see Ron.

"But you need to keep quiet," she reminded them firmly. They quickly agreed before gathering around Ron's bed. He was asleep, just as Mr. Weasley had said, and every once in a while he would mumble something.

Ten minutes had gone by when the hospital wing doors opened again, and Fred and George came striding into the room.

"Is he all right?" Fred asked as he and his twin joined them.

"He will be," Liza said, looking down at her friend. "That's what we've been told, anyway."

"So, all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?" Fred said, taking one of the empty seats.

"This isn't how we imagined handing over our present," George added, putting a gift onto the table next to Ron's bed. He sat down as well.

"Yeah, when we picture the scene, he was conscious," Fred said.

"There we were in Hogsmeade, waiting to surprise him—" George said.

"You were in Hogsmeade?" Ginny interrupted.

"We were thinking of buying Zonko's," Fred explained. "A Hogsmeade branch, you know, but a fat lot of good it'll do us if you lot aren't allowed out at weekends to buy our stuff anymore… But never mind that now." He turned to look at Harry and asked, "How exactly did it happen, Harry?"

Harry took a breath before telling the twins the story again.

"…and then I got the bezoar down his throat and his breathing eased up a bit, Slughorn ran for help, McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey turned up, and they brought Ron up here," he finished. "They reckon he'll be all right. Madam Pomfrey says he'll have to stay here a week or so…keep taking essence of rue…"

"Blimey, it was luck you thought of a bezoar," George commented.

"Lucky there was one in the room," Harry said. Liza heard Hermione sniff next to her, and Liza took one of Hermione's hands and squeezed it.

"Do Mum and Dad know?" Fred asked.

"They've already seen him," Ginny answered, "they arrived an hour ago—they're in Dumbledore's office now, but they'll be back soon…" There was a pause while everyone listened to Ron mumble in his sleep.

"So the poison was in the drink?" Fred asked.

"Yes," Harry said. "Slughorn poured it out—"

"Would he have been able to slip something into Ron's glass without you seeing?" Fred cut in.

"Probably," Harry said, "but why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?"

"No idea," Fred said. "You don't think he could have mixed up the glasses by mistake? Meaning to get you?"

"That's what I wondered at first," Liza said. "But why would Slughorn want to poison Harry?"

"I dunno, but there must be loads of people who'd like to poison Harry, mustn't there?" Fred pointed out. "'The Chosen One' and all that?"

"So you think Slughorn's a Death Eater?" Ginny asked.

"Anything's possible," Fred said.

"He could be under the Imperius Curse," George added.

"Or he could be innocent," Ginny said. "The poison could have been in the bottle, in which case it was probably meant for Slughorn himself."

"Who'd want to kill Slughorn?" Fred asked.

"Dumbledore reckons Voldemort wanted Slughorn on his side," Harry said. "Slughorn was in hiding for a year before he came to Hogwarts. And…And maybe Voldemort wants him out of the way, maybe he thinks he could be valuable to Dumbledore."

"But you said Slughorn was planning on giving the bottle to Dumbledore," Liza said. "So the poison could have been meant for Dumbledore."

"Then the poisoner didn't know Slughorn very well," Hermione spoke up. "Anyone who knew Slughorn would have known there was a good chance he'd keep something that tasty for himself."

"Er-my-nee," Ron murmured suddenly. Everyone turned to look at him, but he was still sleeping.

The hospital wing doors burst open, and they all turned to see Hagrid striding into the ward, looking concerned. He was carrying his cross-bow and was leaving a trail of muddy footprints behind him.

"Bin in the forest all day!" he reported. "Aragog's worse, I bin readin' to him—didn' get up ter dinner till jus' now an' then Professor Sprout told me abou' Ron! How is he?"

"Not bad," Harry said. "They say he'll be okay."

"No more than seven visitors at a time!" Madam Pomfrey snapped, walking towards them from her office.

"Hagrid makes seven," George said.

"Oh…yes…" Madam Pomfrey said, flustered. Then she pulled her wand out and started tending to Hagrid's footprints.

"I don' believe this," Hagrid said, looking at Ron. "Jus'don' believe it… Look at him lyin' there… Who'd want ter hurt him, eh?"

"That's just what we were discussing," Harry said. "We don't know."

"Someone couldn' have a grudge against the Gryffindor Quidditch team, could they?" Hagrid asked. "Firs' Katie, now Ron…"

"I can't see anyone trying to bump off a Quidditch team," George said.

"Wood might've done the Slytherins if he could've got away with it," Fred said, chuckling slightly.

"Well, I don't think it's Quidditch, but I think there's a connection between the attacks," Hermione said.

"How d'you work that out?" Fred asked.

"Well, for one thing, they both ought to have been fatal and weren't, although that was pure luck," Hermione explained. "And for another, neither the poison nor the necklace seems to have reached the person who was supposed to be killed. Of course, that makes the person behind this even more dangerous in a way, because they don't seem to care how many people they finish off before they actually reach their victim."

Liza frowned, thinking hard. Maybe Hermione was on to something…

But before she could say anything, the hospital doors opened once more, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley arrived again. Mrs. Weasley hurried forward and pulled Harry into a hug.

"Dumbledore's told us how you save him with the bezoar," she said. "Oh, Harry, what can we say? You saved Ginny…you save Arthur…now you've saved Ron…"

"Don't be…I didn't…" Harry said.

"Half our family does seem to owe you their lives, now I stop and think about it," Mr. Weasley said. "Well, all I can say is that it was a lucky day for the Weasleys when Ron decided to sit in your compartment on the Hogwarts Express, Harry."

"No more than seven visitors!" Madam Pomfrey squawked, rushing over to them again. Harry, Hermione, and Liza immediately stood up.

"We'll go," Liza said to the Weasleys. "Let Ron be with his family, you know." Mrs. Weasley put her hand on Liza's cheek, as a mother to a daughter.

"You are all a part of this family," she said. "Thank you for sitting with him." Then she hugged Liza and Hermione.

"I'll walk with yeh," Hagrid said. Then he, Harry, Hermione, and Liza left the ward.

When they were out in the corridor, Hagrid said, "It's terrible. All this new security, an' kids are still getting' hurt… Dumbledore's worried sick… He don' say much, but I can tell…"

"Hasn't he got any ideas, Hagrid?" Hermione asked.

"I 'spect he's got hundreds of ideas, brain like his," Hagrid replied. "But he doesn' know who sent that necklace nor put poison in that wine, or they'd've bin caught, wouldn' they? Wha' worries me," Hagrid paused to check nobody else was around, "is how long Hogwarts can stay open if kids are bein' attacked. Camber o' Secrets all over again, isn' it? There'll be panic, more parents takin' their kids outta school, an' nex' thing yeh know the board o' governors…" He stopped as a ghost floated by, and then continued, "…the board o' governors'll be talkin' about shuttin' us up fer good."

"Surely not?" Hermione gasped.

"Gotta see it from their point o' view," Hagrid said. "I mean, it's always bin a bit of a risk sendin' a kid ter Hogwarts, hasn' it? Yer expect accidents, don' yeh, with hundred of underage wizards all locked up tergether, but attempted murder, tha's diff'rent. 'S'no wonder Dumbledore's angry with Sn—" He froze, a look of guilt spreading across his face.

"What?" Harry asked. "Dumbledore's angry with Snape?"

"I never said tha'," Hagrid said, shaking his head. "Look at the time, it's gettin' on fer midnight, I need ter—"

"Hagrid, why is Dumbledore angry with Snape?" Harry interrupted.

"Shhh!" Hagrid hissed. "Don' shout stuff like that, Harry, d'yeh wan' me ter lose me job? Mind, I don' suppose yeh'd care, would yeh, not now yeh've given up Care of Mag—"

"Don't try and make me feel guilty, it won't work!" Harry insisted. "What's Snape done?"

"I dunno, Harry, I shouldn'ta heard it at all!" Hagrid said. "I—well, I was comin' outta the forest the other evenin' an' I overheard 'em talking—well, arguin'. Didn't like ter draw attention to meself, so I sorta sulked an' tried not ter listen, but it was a—well, a heated discussion an' it wasn' easy ter block it out."

"Well?" Harry asked impatiently.

"Well—I jus' heard Snape sayin' Dumbledore took too much fer granted an' maybe he—Snape—didn't want ter do it anymore—"

"Do what?" Harry demanded.

"I dunno, Harry, it sounded like Snape was feelin' a bit overworked, tha's all," Hagrid said. "Anyway, Dumbledore told him flat out he'd agreed ter do it an' that was all there was to it. Pretty firm with him. An' then he said summat abou' Snape makin' investigations in his House, in Slytherin. Well, there's nothin' strange abou' that!" Hagrid said when Harry, Hermione, and Liza all looked at each other. "All the Heads o' Houses were asked ter look inter that necklace business—"

"Yeah, but Dumbledore's not having rows with the rest of them, is he?" Harry pointed out.

"Look," Hagrid said. "I know what yeh're like abou' Snape, Harry, an' I don' want yeh ter go readin' more inter this than there is."

"Look out," Hermione said. The other three turned to see Filch turning the corner.

"Oho!" he said. "Out of bed so late, this'll mean detention!"

"No it won', Filch," Hagrid said. "They're with me, aren' they?"

"And what difference does that make?" Filch asked.

"I'm a ruddy teacher, aren' I, yeh sneakin' Squib!" Hagrid snapped. Filch drew himself up taller, looking angry.

"Get goin'," Hagrid added to Harry, Hermione, and Liza. The three students turned at once and left the scene. They ran all the way back to the portrait of the Fat Lady, and on the way, they passed Peeves, who was singing loudly as he zoomed towards the shouting.

They entered the common room after waking the Fat Lady up, and Hermione immediately left for the dormitory. Harry and Liza, however, sat in front of the fire.

"Harry, I've just thought of something," Liza said in a whisper. "Well, I thought of it back in the hospital wing. Remember when Hermione said that she thought the two attacks were linked?"

"Yeah," Harry replied.

"That mead was meant for Dumbledore," Liza said. "What if the necklace was meant for him, too? What if someone's been trying to kill Dumbledore?" Harry looked at her, his eyes a bit wide.

"But what about what Hermione said about Slughorn?" Harry asked. "Nobody who knew Slughorn would have given him mead to give to Dumbledore…"

"Maybe the attacker is getting desperate," Liza said.

"Maybe…" Harry said, turning back to the fire. They sat in silence for a few minutes when a shout startled them.

"There you are, Potter!" Harry stood at once, drawing his wand. Liza turned, staying seated on the couch, although she also put her hand to her wand pocket. Standing up out of a chair on the other side of the room was Cormac McLaggen.

"I've been waiting for you to come back," Cormac explained, walking over to the couch. "Must've fallen asleep. Look, I saw them taking Weasley up to the hospital wing earlier. Didn't look like he'll be fit for next week's match."

"Oh…right…Quidditch," Harry said. He put his wand away. "Yeah…he might not make it."

"Well, then, I'll be playing Keeper, won't I?" Cormac asked eagerly.

"Yeah," Harry said. "Yeah, I suppose so…"

"Excellent," Cormac said, sounding pleased. "So when's practice?"

"What? Oh…there's one tomorrow evening," Harry answered wearily.

"Good," Cormac said, satisfied. "Listen, Potter, we should have a talk beforehand. I've got some ideas on strategy you might find useful."

"Right," Harry said with a nod. "Well, I'll hear them tomorrow, then. I'm pretty tired now…see you…" He glanced over his shoulder and said, "'Night, Liza."

"'Night," Liza replied as Harry left for the boys' staircase. Cormac, yawning and stretching, also left for his dormitory, leaving Liza alone in the common room. She turned back to the fire, thinking worriedly about both Ron and what Hagrid had said about the school being closed.

 _It'll be okay_ , she told herself firmly. _They're not going to close the school, and Ron will be better very soon._

Repeating that thought in her head, she slowly went up to bed.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next day, everyone knew that Ron had been poisoned. However, there wasn't as much talk as there had been with Katie and the necklace. The general consensus was that Ron's poisoning was probably an accident due to being in the Potions master's study, and that since he was given an antidote immediately, there was no lasting harm done.

Instead, the school shifted its focus to the next Quidditch match of the season, which would be Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. Many of the Gryffindors wanted to see Zacharias Smith, who was a Chaser on the Hufflepuff team, pay for his terrible commentary during their last match.

Harry was now being followed around by both Cormac and Lavender. All Cormac seemed to be able to talk about was Quidditch, and Harry had to remind him multiple times that he, Harry, was the Captain.

Lavender, on the other hand, only wanted to talk about Ron. Liza, though determined to support Harry, grew very quickly tired of Lavender's whining.

"Look, why don't you talk to Ron about all this?" Harry finally asked her.

"Well, I would, but he's always asleep when I go and see him!" Lavender pouted. Liza and Harry exchanged confused looks.

"Is he?" Harry asked.

"Is Hermione Granger still visiting him?" Lavender asked abruptly.

"Yes," Liza replied, narrowing her eyes at the girl. "They're friends."

"Friends, don't make me laugh," Lavender scoffed. "She didn't talk to him for weeks after he started going out with me! But I suppose she wants to make up with him now he's all _interesting_ …"

"Being poisoned isn't interesting," Liza snapped, "it's awful." Lavender swelled up indignantly, but Harry quickly interrupted them.

"Sorry, got to go—there's McLaggen coming for a talk about Quidditch," Harry said. He grabbed the arm of Liza's robes and pulled her through a door that was pretending to be a wall.

"I don't think I've ever envied you less," Liza said, setting off down the shortcut with Harry. "Also, you better point me in the direction of the common room at some point, because I have a free period and a three-foot essay for Muggle Studies to finish."

The morning of the Quidditch match against Hufflepuff dawned early for Harry and Liza. After breakfast, they went straight to the hospital wing to visit Ron, who wasn't allowed to go down to the pitch and watch the match himself.

"So how's McLaggen shaping up?" Ron asked.

"I've told you," Harry said, "he could be world-class and I wouldn't want to keep him. He keeps trying to tell everyone what to do, he thinks he could play every position better than the rest of us. I can't wait to be shot of him."

"And speaking of getting shot of people," Liza added, "will you stop pretending to be asleep when Lavender comes to see you? She's really getting on our nerves."

"Oh," Ron said. "Yeah. All right."

"If you don't want to go out with her anymore, just tell her," Harry added.

"Yeah…well…it's not that easy, is it?" Ron said. "Hermione going to look in before the match?"

"No, she's already gone down to the pitch with Ginny," Liza said, trying very hard not to smirk at him.

"Oh," Ron repeated. "Right. Well, god luck. Hope you hammer McLag—I mean, Smith."

"I'll try," Harry said. "See you after the match." Liza waved, and the two of them set off for the Quidditch pitch. They were hurrying through the corridors, and when they turned a corner, they saw Malfoy walking the opposite direction with a couple of girls.

"Where're you going?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, I'm really going to tell you, because it's your business, Potter," Malfoy shot back. "You'd better hurry up, they'll be waiting for 'the Chosen Captain'—'the Boy Who Scored'—whatever they call you these days." Malfoy brushed past the Potter twins, his friends hurrying along behind him. Harry remained frozen, watching them leave.

"Harry, come _on_ ," Liza said, pulling on his robes. "You're going to be late—"

"But what about Malfoy—?" Harry started.

"What _about_ him?" Liza asked. "Surely whatever he's up to isn't more important than your Quidditch match?" Harry frowned but didn't reply. He and Liza ran from the castle and down the grounds until they reached the Gryffindor locker rooms. Liza said a hurried goodbye as Harry entered them, and then she went up into the stands by herself.

"Liza!" a voice called. She found Sally-Anne first, her arms high in the air and waving. Hermione, Neville, and John were with her.

"Hi, sorry I'm late," Liza said when she reached them. She pecked John on the mouth in greeting.

"Where were you?" Hermione asked.

"Harry and I went to see Ron," Liza replied. "Had to have a few words with him about his overbearing girlfriend. Anyway—Harry got distracted, but we're here now."

The crowd erupted into cheers as the two teams marched out onto the field. Liza and her friends joined in. Harry and the Hufflepuff Captain stepped forward and shook hands. Then all the players mounted their brooms and took off on Madam Hooch's whistle.

"And that's Smith of Hufflepuff with the Quaffle," the commentator said. Liza's mouth dropped open; it was Luna! "He did the commentary last time, of course, and Ginny Weasley flew into him, I think probably on purpose, it looked like it. Smith was being quite rude about Gryffindor, I expect he regrets that now he's playing them—oh, look, he's lost the Quaffle, Ginny took it from him, I do like her, she's very nice…but now that big Hufflepuff player's got the Quaffle from her, I can't remember his name, it's something like Bibble—no, Buggins—"

"It's Cadwallader!" Professor McGonagall corrected. Liza looked over to the commentators podium to see Professor McGonagall sitting next to Luna as the crowd laughed.

"What are you _doing_ , you great prat, the Quaffle's coming right at you—!" Sally-Anne shouted. Liza quickly turned to see Cadwallader score as McLaggen was yelling something to Ginny. Sally-Anne swore rather loudly.

"And Harry Potter's now having an argument with his Keeper," Luna continued. "I don't think that'll help him find the Snitch, but maybe it's a clever ruse…"

The match continued. Ginny and Demelza each scored a goal, and Cadwallader scored a second time, making it twenty-twenty. Luna went on commentating, although she seemed to like to talk about everything other than the actual match. She began to explain to the crowd that Zacharias Smith, who was having a hard time keeping the Quaffle in his possession for more than a few seconds, must be suffering from something she called "Loser's Lurgy."

Eventually, Professor McGonagall grabbed the megaphone away from Luna and said, "Seventy-forty to Hufflepuff!"

"Is it, already?" Luna said. "Oh, look! The Gryffindor Keeper's got hold of one of the Beater's bats." Heads turned quickly to see that Cormac indeed had one of the Beater's bat. He swung and hit a Bludger just as Harry came flying towards them.

" _Harry_!" Liza screamed as the Bludger hit him. He toppled off his broom and began to fall. The Gryffindor Beaters, who had been flying nearby, zoomed towards him and managed to catch him between them. There were screams all around as Madam Hooch blew her whistle to signal a time out. Peakes and Coote lowered Harry to the ground.

The professors who were in the crowd were converging on Harry. Liza pushed her way through the crowd, reached the pitch, and sprinted across the grass.

"Miss Jones, I'm going to have to ask you to keep back," Professor Burbage said, holding her arm out to catch Liza before she could get too close. "He'll be all right, they're going to take him up to the hospital wing—"

Liza watched as Professor Flitwick conjured a stretcher and levitated Harry onto it. The rest of the Gryffindor team, except for Cormac, had landed nearby as well. Ginny was talking heatedly with Madam Hooch.

When Professor Flitwick set off for the castle, Liza hurried forward.

"Will he be okay?" she asked worriedly to Professor McGonagall.

"Of course he will," Professor McGonagall replied, rather gently. "There's nothing you can do for him right now, Miss Jones. I suggest you go back to your seat. You can visit him in the hospital wing this evening, if Madam Pomfrey allows it…"

Madam Hooch was instructing the rest of the Gryffindor team to get into the air. Liza nodded at Professor McGonagall, defeated, and hurried back into the stands.

"What's happened?" Hermione asked, looking terrified. "Is Harry all right?"

"They took him up to the hospital wing," Liza replied. "They didn't tell me anything else." Madam Hooch had signaled for the game to restart, and Liza looked up at the players half-heartedly.

"We're going to get slaughtered without a Seeker," Sally-Anne moaned. "That stupid, _stupid_ prat, I'm going to kick his ass for this."

When the game finally ended, the score was three hundred and twenty to sixty.

"I'm going up to the hospital wing," Liza said immediately as the Gryffindors around her started to leave the stands. "I have to make sure he's okay."

"I'll walk you," John offered. They said goodbye to Hermione, Sally-Anne, and Neville and began the walk back up to the castle.

"Are you all right?" John asked when they reached the Entrance Hall.

"I'll be okay once I know Harry's okay," Liza replied. They continued on in silence up to the hospital wing, where they paused outside the doors.

"I'll let you go in by yourself," John said. "I know how Madam Pomfrey can be." Liza nodded before throwing her arms around his neck.

"Thank you," she murmured into his shoulder. John squeezed her back, kissing the side of her head. Then he pulled away, smiled at her, and left for his common room. Liza squared up to the hospital wing doors, pushed them open, and entered the ward.

"Hi, Liza," Ron said.

"Hi," Liza replied, going over to his bed. "Is Harry okay?"

"Yeah, Madam Pomfrey fixed him up in a heartbeat," Ron replied, gesturing to the bed next to him. There were privacy screens up. "He's still unconscious, though. Madam Pomfrey says it might be a few hours still…"

The door to the hospital wing burst open again, and the rest of the Gryffindor team, except for Cormac, entered the room. Ginny hurried over to Liza and Ron.

"How's he doing?" she asked at once. Ron repeated to her what he'd said to Liza. Ginny looked relieved.

"It was terrifying," Liza told Ron. "Absolutely terrifying…"

"So what happened, exactly?" Ron asked, sitting up straighter in his bed. "Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell me much."

"He got hit in the head with a Bludger," Ginny replied, "which McLaggen hit at him." Ron's jaw dropped.

"What?" he asked. "Why was McLaggen hitting a Bludger? Why did he hit it _at_ Harry?"

"He took my bat," Jimmy Peakes said, looking angry. "He was trying to show me how to hit the Bludger at Cadwallader, but he mishit it and hit Harry instead."

"What a prat," Ron said, still looking a bit shocked.

"You'd better be good to go for the last match," Ginny said to Ron. "I'm not playing on a team with McLaggen ever again, nor is anyone else in this room." The rest of the Gryffindor team nodded in agreement.

Madam Hooch, finally noticing the group of students standing around in the hospital wing, came over to them.

"If you're here to see Potter, he's going to be asleep for a little while longer," she reported. "If you're going to stay, you need to keep quiet."

The Gryffindor team, besides Ginny, decided to leave. Dean, who was still on the team in Katie's place, tried to get Ginny to leave with him, but she refused. When it was just Ginny, Liza, and Ron left, Ginny openly rolled her eyes.

"Wanna talk about it?" Liza asked.

"Not really, no," Ginny sighed. She took a seat next to Ron's bed, and Liza did the same. Then Ginny said, "It was a terrible match, it really was."

"Most Quidditch matches are when a side is missing their Seeker," Liza said. "Madam Hooch wouldn't let you reschedule?"

"No," Ginny replied glumly. "She said the match had already started so we could either keep playing as we were, bring in substitutes, or forfeit."

"Well, why didn't you just sub for Seeker?" Liza asked.

"Hooch wouldn't let me," Ginny answered. "Said I'd started the game as a Chaser so I had to continue in that position. And we don't have a backup Seeker, and we didn't want to forfeit, so we just had to play as we were." She paused and said, "We were lucky that we were able to start with a Seeker, as it was. Harry barely showed up on time." Ron looked confused.

"I'll tell you later," Liza promised, and Ron nodded.

"So how did McLaggen do?" he asked, trying to sound uninterested.

"You don't have to worry about him replacing you," Ginny said. "The final score was three hundred and twenty points to sixty, which means that they scored one hundred and seventy before catching the Snitch. If that doesn't tell you how McLaggen did, then I don't know what else to say to convince you."

"He had some nerve," Liza said angrily. "Even after they took Harry off the field, McLaggen kept trying to tell the rest of the team how to play. His arrogance is unbelievable." She snorted and added, "Sally-Anne said she was going to kick his ass."

"Well, hopefully she leaves some of it for us," Ginny said. "The rest of the team would like to do some kicking, as well."

Ginny stayed in the hospital wing with them for a little while longer before excusing herself. Liza sat in the chair between Ron's and Harry's beds. They were silent for a while before the hospital wing doors opened and Hermione hurried in.

"Is he all right?" she asked anxiously.

"Yes," Liza replied. "Madam Pomfrey fixed him up."

"She said he'd need to spend the whole weekend here, probably," Ron added, looking at Hermione carefully. Hermione let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh," she said after a moment. She pulled a package out of her robes and set in on top of Ron's bed. "I almost forgot. Happy late birthday." Ron reached forward and opened the present.

"Thanks, Hermione," he said genuinely. Hermione blushed slightly, muttered a quick farewell, and left the hospital wing again.

It was another few hours before Harry finally came around. He shifted around for a moment before lifting his head and looking over to Liza and Ron.

"Nice of you to drop in," Ron joked. Harry glanced around the room, taking in his surroundings.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"Cracked skull," Madam Pomfrey replied, coming over to his bed. "Nothing to worry about, I mended it at once, but I'm keeping you in overnight. You shouldn't overexert yourself for a few hours."

"I don't want to stay here overnight," Harry grumbled. He sat up in his bed, pushing his covers aside. "I want to find McLaggen and kill him."

"I'm afraid that would come under the heading of 'overexertion,'" Madam Pomfrey said, pushing him back down into his bed. She pulled her wand out. "You will stay here until I discharge you, Potter, or I shall call the headmaster." She turned and went back to her office.

"D'you know how much we lost by?" Harry asked, turning back to his friends.

"Yeah," Liza answered. "Final score was three hundred and twenty to sixty."

"Brilliant," Harry said sarcastically. "Really brilliant! When I get hold of McLaggen—"

"You'll need to get in line, almost the entire House feels the same," Liza interrupted.

"Besides, you don't want to get hold of him, he's the size of a troll," Ron said. "Personally, I Think there's a lot to be said for hexing him with that toenail thing of the Prince's."

"Anyway," Liza said, shaking her head at Ron, "the rest of the team may have already dealt with him before you have a chance to do so. They were very upset."

"I could hear the match commentary from here," Ron laughed. "I hope Luna always commentates from now on… _Loser's Lurgy_ …" But Harry still looked angry, and Ron's laughter quickly died out.

"Ginny came in to visit while you were unconscious," he reported. "She reckons you only just arrived on time for the match. How come? You left here early enough."

"Oh…" Harry said. "Yeah…well, Liza and I saw Malfoy sneaking off with a couple of girls who didn't look like they wanted to be with him, and that's the second time he's made sure he isn't down on the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the school; he skipped the last match too, remember? Wish I'd followed him now, the match was such a fiasco…"

"Don't be stupid," Liza said. "You couldn't have missed a Quidditch match just to follow Malfoy, you're the Captain!"

"I want to know what he's up to," Harry insisted. "And don't tell me it's all in my head, not after what I overheard between him and Snape—"

"I never said it was all in your head," Ron said, "but there's no rule saying only one person at a time can be plotting anything in this place! You're getting a bit obsessed with Malfoy, Harry. I mean, thinking about missing a match just to follow him…"

"I want to catch him at it!" Harry said. "I mean, where's he going when he disappears off the map?"

"I dunno…Hogsmeade?" Liza guessed.

"I've never seen him going along any of the secret passageways on the map," Harry said. "I thought they were being watched now anyway?"

"Well then, we don't know," Ron said.

"Listen, it's getting late," Liza said, getting up and stretching her arms over her head. "I should probably go and get some dinner. I'll come back to see you tomorrow, okay?" Harry and Ron nodded and murmured their agreement. "Good night, boys."

"Good night, Liza," both of them answered.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	16. Chapter 16 Harry's Obsession

_**A/N: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 16 – Harry's Obsession**

The next Monday, Harry and Ron were both discharged from the hospital wing. Liza and Hermione met them in the hospital, and the four of them went down to breakfast together. Liza was very pleased that Hermione and Ron were seemingly back on good terms with one another; she had missed spending time as a foursome.

"Anything interesting happen this weekend?" Harry asked as they set off down the corridor.

"Ginny and Dean had a row in the common room after Ginny came back from visiting you in the hospital wing," Hermione replied.

"Really?" Liza asked. "I'm not surprised, they've been on thin ice lately."

"What did they row about?" Harry questioned. They turned a corner and found themselves in a deserted corridor except for one young girl holding a set of brass scales in her hands. She looked around at the four Gryffindors and, looking scared, dropped the scales to the floor.

"It's all right!" Hermione said. "Here…" She tapped the scales with her wand and said, " _Reparo_." The girl, still looking terrified, didn't say anything as the sixth years continued past.

"I swear they're getting smaller," Ron commented.

"Never mind her," Harry said. "What did Ginny and Dean row about, Hermione?"

"Oh, Dean was laughing about McLaggen hitting that Bludger at you," Hermione said.

"It must've looked funny," Ron said, shrugging.

"It didn't look funny at all!" Liza snapped. "It looked terrible, and if Coote and Peakes hadn't caught Harry he could've been seriously injured."

"Yeah, well, there was no need for Ginny and Dean to split up over it," Harry said. "Or are they still together?"

"Yes, they are—but why are you so interested?" Hermione shot back. Liza looked at Harry suspiciously, whose cheeks looked a bit warm.

"I just don't want my Quidditch team messed up again!" he said defiantly. Liza raised an eyebrow at him.

"Harry!" a voiced called from behind them. "Liza!" They all stopped to look over their shoulders.

"Oh, hi, Luna," Harry said. Everyone turned to face the Ravenclaw.

"I went to the hospital wing to find you," Luna said. "But they said you'd left…" She began to rummage around in her bag, pulling out an odd assortment of things. There was something that looked like a green onion, a large mushroom, and some sand before finally pulling out two scrolls of parchment.

"I've been told to give you these," Luna explained. Harry and Liza took their scrolls and unrolled them.

"Tonight," Harry said simply.

"Wednesday," Liza replied.

"Nice commentary last match!" Ron said, handing over Luna's things. She smiled.

"You're making fun of me, aren't you?" she said. "Everyone says I was dreadful."

"No, I'm serious!" Ron insisted. "I can't remember enjoying commentary more! What is this, by the way?" He held up the green onion.

"Oh, it's a Gurdyroot," Luna replied. "You can keep it if you like, I've got a few of them. They're really excellent for warding off Gulping Plimpies." Then she gave a lazy wave and walked away.

"You know, she's grown on me, Luna," Ron said as the other four continued on for the Great Hall. "I know she's insane, but it's in a good—" He stopped abruptly, paling slightly. They had just reached the marble stairs and saw Lavender Brown standing at the bottom of them.

"Hi," Ron said when they had descended.

"C'mon," Harry murmured to the other girls, and the three of them left Ron to deal with Lavender. As they past, they heard Lavender say, "Why didn't you tell me you were getting out today? And why was _she_ with you?"

Harry, Hermione, and Liza sat down together at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall and began their breakfast. Ron didn't show up for nearly half an hour, and he grudgingly sat with Lavender. Liza glanced at Hermione, who was trying her best to hide her pleased smirk.

For the rest of the day, Hermione remained in a good mood. She even decided to look over Harry's Hebology essay for him, something she'd been refusing to do since she'd stopped talking to Ron. She knew that Harry would let Ron copy from him, and she hadn't wanted to help Ron.

"Thanks a lot, Hermione," Harry said. "Listen, I've got to hurry or I'll be late for Dumbledore…"

"Good luck," Liza said, and with a wave, Harry left the common room.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

On Wednesday evening, Liza went up to Dumbledore's office for her lesson. When she knocked on the door and was given permission to enter, she went inside and stopped short. Snape was standing next to Dumbledore's desk. The headmaster was seated behind it, as usual.

"Come in, Liza," Dumbledore said, and Liza complied, walking cautiously up to the professors. She took her normal seat and waited to see what this was all about.

"Good evening," Dumbledore said, smiling at the student. "Professor Snape has kindly agreed to help us with our Occlumency lesson this evening. He will be testing your mind's barriers."

"Oh," Liza said, surprised.

"Of course, we will only proceed if you are comfortable with this," Dumbledore added.

"I—yeah," Liza said, nodding. "I'm fine with it."

"Very good," Dumbledore said approvingly. He looked at Snape. "Take it away, then, Severus." Snape stepped forward, pulling his wand from his robes. Then, without warning, he pointed it at Liza and said, " _Legillimens!_ "

Liza could feel him immediately attempting to enter her mind. She pushed back with her mental blocks, surprised at how easy it was to keep him out. But then, as the seconds ticked by, he pushed harder. Liza strained to keep him out before remembering that she could use her wand. She silently cast a Shield Charm, and Snape's presence vanished.

"Impressive," Snape said as Liza opened her eyes. "You have accomplished more than your brother ever did. _Legillimens_!" Liza knocked his attack back immediately, not even using her wand to stop him. Snape stared at her, failing to keep an impressed look out of his eyes.

"She seems adequate, for the time being," Snape said, turning to Dumbledore. "But unless you tried to simulate a torture scene for her to practice in, I won't be able to tell if she's fully mastered Occlumency."

"Hopefully it won't come to that," Dumbledore said. "Thank you, Severus. That will be all." Snape gave Dumbledore a small bow and exited the room without looking at Liza again.

"You really think I'm good enough?" Liza asked.

"Professor Snape is one of the best Occlumens I've ever met," Dumbledore replied. "If you were able to resist him, I think you are well on your way. Continue to practice clearing your mind, however; that is still an important step.

"Now, I think we'll continue with some other things," Dumbledore went on. He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled a package out of it. "I wanted to give this to you." He slid the package over the desk and Liza picked it up. After a nod from Dumbledore, she opened it to find two small mirrors.

"Mirrors?" Liza asked, confused.

"They are for communication," Dumbledore said, smiling slightly. "Hand one of those to me and you'll see." Liza gave one of the mirrors to him, and then she looked into the one still in her lap. "Now, say my name into the mirror," Dumbledore said.

"Professor Dumbledore," Liza said, looking at hers. Her reflection shimmered for a moment before being replaced with Dumbledore's face. She gasped.

"This is a neat little way for communication, even from a great distance," Dumbledore said. "It's called a two-way mirror. Just say the name of the person who is in possession of the other, and you will be able to talk to one another. I figured that could be helpful in the future. Oh, and when you've finished your conversation, just tap the mirror with your wand and say _Finite_."

"Thanks, Professor," Liza said, taking the second mirror back from him. She carefully folded them back into the package.

"One last piece of business for tonight, then," Dumbledore said. "We are going to be practicing the Extension Charm. Now, Extension Charms are very heavily monitored by the Ministry of Magic, but as long as you perform them correctly, they will be undetectable. Let us begin…"

For the rest of the night, Liza practiced casting Extension Charms onto various objects until Dumbledore was satisfied. With a final farewell, Liza departed from Dumbledore's office feeling tired but proud of herself.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

March gave way into April, and at the beginning of the month, a new sign went up on the Gryffindor notice board. The date for the Apparition Test was going to be the twenty-first of April. The sixth years had spotted the sign when they returned from dinner one Sunday night.

"Well, that's something to look forward to," Hermione said as she, Liza, Ron, and Harry sat down to finish up their homework.

"Maybe for you," Liza said. "You have to be seventeen by then, and Harry and I won't be."

"At least you can Apparate, though!" Ron snapped, looking anxious. "You'll have no trouble come July!" Liza shrugged. She'd finally Apparated three weeks earlier and was quite confident in her abilities.

"I've only done it once," Harry argued.

They sat in silence for a while, working on various homework assignments. Hermione was doing some translations for Ancient Runes, Ron was working on a Defense Against the Dark Arts essay, and Liza was finishing up her Muggle Studies essay. Harry, on the other hand, was leafing through his Potions book.

"You won't find anything in there," Hermione said abruptly.

After Harry's last lesson with Dumbledore, he had told the others that Dumbledore really wanted Harry to get that memory from Slughorn, and that there would be no point in meeting if they didn't have it. Over the last few weeks, Harry had begun to get more desperate.

"Don't start, Hermione," he warned. "If it hadn't been for the Prince, Ron wouldn't be sitting here now."

"He would if you'd just listened to Snape in our first year," Hermione pointed out. Harry simply flipped to the next page in his textbook.

"I'm telling you, the stupid Prince isn't going to be able to help you with this, Harry!" Hermione said. "There's only one way to force someone to do what you want, and that's the Imperius Curse, which is illegal—"

"Yeah, I know that, thanks," Harry interrupted. "That's why I'm looking for something different. Dumbledore says Veritaserum won't do it, but there might be something else, a potion or a spell…"

"You're going about it the wrong way," Hermione insisted. "Only you can get the memory, Dumbledore says. That must mean you can persuade Slughorn where other people can't. It's not a question of slipping him a potion, anyone could do that—"

"How d'you spell 'belligerent'?" Ron asked suddenly. "It can't be B-U-M—"

"No, it isn't," Liza said, frowning. Hermione reached over and pulled Ron's essay towards her.

"And 'augury' doesn't begin O-R-G either," she said. "What kind of quill are you using?"

"It's one of Fred's and George's Spell-Check ones…but I think the charm must be wearing off…" Ron said, shaking the quill.

"Yes, it must," Hermione said, "because we were asked how we'd deal with dementors, not 'Dugbogs,' and I don't remember you changing your name to 'Roonil Wazlib' either."

"Ha!" Liza snorted. "Roonil Wazlib…"

"Ah, no!" Ron said. "Don't say I'll have to write the whole thing out again!"

"It's okay, we can fix it," Hermione said, pulling her wand out.

"I love you, Hermione," Ron replied, leaning back in his chair.

"Don't let Lavender hear you saying that," Hermione murmured, her cheeks flushing a bit.

"I won't," Ron said. "Or maybe I will…then she'll ditch me…"

"Why don't you ditch her if you want to finish it?" Harry asked.

"You haven't ever chucked anyway, have you?" Ron shot back. "You and Cho just—"

"Sort of fell apart, yeah," Harry said.

"Wish that would happen with me and Lavender," Ron mumbled. "But the more I hint I want to finish it, the tighter she holds on. It's like going out with the giant squid."

"She deserves a proper break up, Roonil," Liza said.

"Please don't start calling me that," Ron groaned.

"No promises," Liza said. "Anyway, I was able to break up with someone I still cared about—"

"And now you're back together with him, aren't you?" Ron cut in.

"My point was that you don't care about Lavender anymore, so it shouldn't be too difficult," Liza said. Ron didn't answer, and Liza didn't press him further.

About twenty minutes later, Hermione handed over Ron's essay and said, "There."

"Thanks a million," Ron said, taking the parchment. "Can I borrow your quill for the conclusion?" Hermione gave him her quill, and he went back to writing.

Amidst their discussion, the last of the Gryffindors had gone up to bed, leaving Liza and her friends alone in the common room. Liza wrote down one last sentence on her Muggle Studies essay and rolled up the parchment.

Suddenly, there was a loud crack. Liza jumped as Hermione let out a surprised yelp. Ron knocked his ink bottle over his essay, cursing, and Harry exclaimed, "Kreacher!"

There in front of them stood Kreacher, bowing low to the ground.

"Master said he wanted regular reports on what the Malfoy boy is doing, so Kreacher has come to give—" He was cut off by another loud crack, and Dobby appeared next to him.

"Dobby has been helping too, Harry Potter!" Dobby said. "And Kreacher ought to tell Dobby when he is coming to see Harry Potter so they can make their reports together!"

"What is this?" Hermione asked. "What's going on, Harry?"

"Well…they've been following Malfoy for me," Harry explained, looking a bit sheepish.

"And you didn't think to tell us?" Liza asked.

"Ron knew," Harry said quickly.

"Hey!" Ron protested. "Don't throw me under the bus!"

"Dobby has not slept for a week, Harry Potter!" Dobby said, drawing the sixth years' attentions back to the elves.

"You haven't slept, Dobby?" Hermione asked. "But surely, Harry, you didn't tell him not to—"

"No, of course I didn't," Harry said. "Dobby, you can sleep, all right? But has either of you found out anything?"

"Master Malfoy moves with a nobility that befits his pure blood," Kreacher began, and Liza rolled her eyes. "His features recall the fine bones of my mistress and his manners are those of—"

"Draco Malfoy is a bad boy!" Dobby interrupted. "A bad boy who—who—" He stopped, looking conflicted, and then streaked towards the fire. Harry grabbed him about his middle and held onto him until he stopped struggling.

"Thank you, Harry Potter," Dobby said. "Dobby still finds it difficult to speak ill of his old masters…" Harry let go of him, and Dobby turned to Kreacher before continuing, "But Kreacher should know that Draco Malfoy is not a good master to a house-elf!"

"Yeah, we don't need to hear about you being in love with Malfoy," Harry said. "Let's fast forward to where he's actually been going."

"Master Malfoy eats in the Great Hall," Kreacher went on, "he sleeps in a dormitory in the dungeons, he attends his classes in a variety of—"

"Dobby, you tell me," Harry said impatiently. "Has he been going anywhere he shouldn't have?"

"Harry Potter, sir, the Malfoy boy is breaking no rules that Dobby can discover," Dobby said, "but he is still keen to avoid detection. He has been making regular visits to the seventh floor with a variety of other students, who keep watch from him while he enters—"

"The Room of Requirement!" Harry gasped, hitting himself in the head with his Potions book. "That's where he's been sneaking off to! That's where he's doing…whatever he's doing! And I bet that's why he's been disappearing off the map—come to think of it, I've never seen the Room of Requirement on there!"

"Maybe the Marauders never knew the room was there," Ron suggested.

"I think it'll be part of the magic of the room," Hermione said. "If you need it to be Unplottable, it will be."

"Dobby, have you managed to get in to have a look at what Malfoy's doing?" Harry asked.

"No, Harry Potter, that is impossible," Dobby replied sadly.

"No, it's not," Harry said. "Malfoy got into our headquarters there last year, so I'll be able to get in and spy on him, no problem."

"I don't think you will, Harry," Liza said, frowning. "Malfoy already knew exactly how we were using the room because that girl Marietta had blabbed. He needed the room to become the headquarters of the D.A., so it did. But you don't know what the room becomes when Malfoy goes in there, so you don't know what to ask it to transform into."

"There'll be a way around that," Harry said, waving her off. "You've done brilliantly, Dobby."

"Kreacher's done well too," Hermione said. Kreacher looked up at the ceiling, his eyes bugging out.

"The Mudblood is speaking to Kreacher, Kreacher will pretend he cannot hear—" he said.

"Get out of it," Harry commanded. Kreacher bowed once more and disappeared. "You'd better go and get some sleep too, Dobby," Harry added.

"Thank you, Harry Potter, sir!" Dobby said before Disapparating as well.

"How good is this?" Harry asked, turning to his friends. "We know where Malfoy's going! We've got him cornered now!"

"Yeah, it's great," Ron agreed, although he was preoccupied with his ink-covered essay. Hermione took the essay from him again and began to siphon the ink away with her wand.

"But what's all this about him going up there with a 'variety of students'?" Liza asked, frowning. "How many people are in on it? You wouldn't think he'd trust lots of them to know what he's doing…"

"Yeah, that is weird," Harry agreed. "I heard him telling Crabbe it wasn't Crabbe's business what he was doing…so what's he telling all these…all these…" He stopped, staring into the fire, a calculating look on his face. "God, I've been stupid," he breathed. "It's obvious, isn't it? There was a great vat of it down in the dungeon… He could've nicked some any time during that lesson…"

"Nicked what?" Liza asked, confused.

"Polyjuice Potion," Harry said. "He stole some of the Polyjuice Potion Slughorn showed us in our first Potions lesson… There aren't a whole variety of students standing guard for Malfoy…it's just Crabbe and Goyle as usual… Yeah, it all fits!" He jumped up, looking excited. "They're stupid enough to do what they're told even if he won't tell them what he's up to…but he doesn't want them to be seen lurking around outside the Room of Requirement, so he's got them taking Polyjuice to make them look like other people… Those two girls we saw him with when he missed Quidditch—ha! Crabbe and Goyle!"

"Do you mean to say," Hermione said, "that that little girl whose scales I repaired—?"

"Yeah, of course!" Harry said. "Of course! Malfoy must've been inside the room at the time, so she—what am I talking about?— _he_ dropped the scales to tell Malfoy not to come out, because there was someone there! And there was that girl who dropped the toadspawn too! We've been walking past him all this time and not realizing it!"

"He's got Crabbe and Goyle transforming into girls?" Ron chuckled. "Blimey… No wonder they don't look too happy these days… I'm surprised they don't tell him to stuff it…"

"Well, they wouldn't, would they, if he's show them his Dark Mark?" Harry said.

"Hmmm…the Dark Mark we don't know exists," Hermione pointed out. She rolled up Ron's fixed essay and gave it back tohim.

"We'll see," Harry said.

"Yes, we will," Hermione said. "But, Harry, before you get all excited, I still don't think you'll be able to get into the Room of Requirement without knowing that's there first. And I don't think you should forget that what you're _supposed_ to be concentrating on it getting that memory from Slughorn." She stood and threw her bag of her shoulder. "I'm going up to bed. Coming, Liza?"

"Sure," Liza replied, gathering up her things as well. "Good night, boys."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning at breakfast, Harry told the others that before Defense Against the Dark Arts he was going to try and get into the Room of Requirement. Hermione protested feverishly, reminding him that he was supposed to be working on getting the memory from Slughorn. She was interrupted by an owl arriving to deliver her morning copy of the _Daily Prophet_.

"Look," Harry said. "I haven't forgotten about Slughorn, but I haven't got a clue how to get that memory off him, and until I get a brain wave why shouldn't I find out what Malfoy's doing?"

"I've already told you, you need to _persuade_ Slughorn," Hermione insisted. "It's not a question of tricking him or bewitching him, or Dumbledore could have done it in a second. Instead of messing around outside the Room of Requirement, you should go and find Slughorn and start appealing to his better nature." Then she disappeared behind her newspaper.

"Anyone we know—?" Ron asked.

"Yes!" Hermione said. Liza almost spat out her forkful of eggs. "But it's all right, he's not dead—it's Mundungus, he's been arrested and sent to Azkaban! Something to do with impersonating an Inferius during an attempted burglary…and someone called Octavius Pepper has vanished… Oh, and how horrible, a nine-year-old boy has been arrested for trying to kill his grandparents, they think he was under the Imperius Curse…"

At the end of breakfast, Hermione departed for Ancient Runes, leaving Ron and Liza to see if Harry was serious about trying to get into the Room of Requirement.

"Harry, I really don't know if this is a good idea," Liza said as they left the Great Hall.

"I'm going," Harry said. "I've got Malfoy cornered, and this is the perfect time to try and get into the room. I'll see you in Defense Against the Dark Arts." He gave Ron and Liza a brief smile before setting off for the seventh floor corridor. Liza shook her head and accompanied Ron back up to the common room.

An hour later, Ron and Liza joined Hermione in their Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. Harry entered the room a few minutes later.

"Late again, Potter," Snape said from the front of the room. "Ten points from Gryffindor." Harry sat down next to Ron, looking annoyed. Most of the class were still talking to one another.

"Before we start, I want your dementor essays," Snape began, calling the attention up to him. "And I hope for your sakes they are better than he tripe I had to endure on resisting the Imperius Curse." He waved his wand, and all the scrolls flew through the air and onto his desk. "Now, if you will all open your books to page—what is it, Mr. Finnigan?"

"Sir," Seamus said, "I've been wondering, how do you tell the difference between an Inferius and a ghost? Because there was something in the paper about an Inferius—"

"No, there wasn't," Snape cut him off.

"But sir, I heard people talking—" Seamus tried again.

"If you had actually read the article in question, Mr. Finnigan," Snape interrupted again, "you would have known that the so-called Inferius was nothing but a smelly sneak thief by the name of Mundungus Fletcher."

"I thought Snape and Mundungus were on the same side," Harry whispered. "Shouldn't he be upset Mundungus has been arrest—"

"But Potter seems to have a lot to say on the subject," Snape said loudly. "Let us ask Potter how we would tell the difference between an Inferius and a ghost."

"Er—well," Harry said as the class turned to look at him, "ghosts are transparent—"

"Oh, very good," Snape said. "Yes, it is easy to see that nearly six years of magical education have not been wasted on you, Potter. ' _Ghosts are transparent_.'" Some of the students giggled.

"Yeah, ghosts are transparent, but Inferi are dead bodies, aren't they?" Harry said. "So they'd be solid—"

"A five-year-old could have told us as much," Snape said. "The Inferius is a corpse that has been reanimated by a Dark wizard's spells. It is not alive, it is merely used like a puppet to do the wizard's bidding. A ghost, as I trust that you are all aware by now, is the imprint of a departed soul left upon the eart…and of course, as Potter so wisely tells us, _transparent_."

"Well, what Harry said is the most useful if we're trying to tell them apart!" Ron spoke up. "When we come face-to-face with one down a dark alley, we're going to be having a shufti to see if it's solid, aren't we, we're not going to be asking, 'Excuse me, are you the imprint of a departed soul?'" Liza couldn't help the laugh that escaped her, and some of the other students snickered as well.

"Another ten points from Gryffindor," Snape said. "I would expect nothing more sophisticated from you, Ronald Weasley, the boy so solid he cannot Apparate half an inch across the room."

" _No_!" Hermione hissed at Harry. "There's no point, you'll just end up in detention again, leave it!"

"Now open your books to page two hundred and thirteen," Snape said, "and read the first two paragraphs on the Cruciatus Curse…"

When class ended, Liza found herself walking with Hermione, Sally-Anne, and John.

"He is such an ass," Liza commented as they walked. "How can Dumbledore let that man teach us? He should not be allowed around children."

"Dumbledore trusts him—" Hermione said.

"Dumbledore trusts a lot of people," Liza said flatly. "That doesn't mean he needs to give them a job at the school."

"Think of it this way," John said. "Just one more year left after this one, and then you won't ever have to sit in a class taught by him again."

"You've got a point, though, Liza," Sally-Anne said. "He's a bit of a bully. Dumbledore must have a good reason for keeping him around."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

That weekend, the sixth years who would be taking their Apparition tests in a few weeks had the chance to go into Hogsmeade and practice. Liza and Harry saw their friends off in the Entrance Hall.

"What are you going to do while we're gone?" Hermione asked, looking pointedly at Harry.

"I'm going to go up to the Room of Requirement and see if I can get inside," Harry replied.

"You'd do better to go straight to Slughorn's office and try and get that memory from him," Hermione said stubbornly.

"I've been trying!" Harry said.

"Well, you've just got to keep trying, haven't you?" Liza said, shrugging.

"Liza!" John joined them, his usual Slytherin friends Rhonda and Jake with him.

"Going to Hogsmeade, then?" Liza asked, smiling at them.

"Yeah, although Rhonda hardly needs it," Jake said. "She was the first person to start Apparating. I secretly think she's coming to show off. How about you?"

"I'm not seventeen till July," Liza reminded him.

"Oh, that's right," Rhonda said. "That sucks though."

"It's fine," Liza said. "Good luck to you guys." Rhonda and Jake smiled and got into the line leaving the castle. John pulled Liza into a hug and kissed the top of her head before going to join them.

"We'd better get in line," Hermione said. "We'll see you two later."

"Good luck," Harry and Liza chorused. Ron and Hermione hurried to join the Apparition group.

"Are you really going to spend all day trying to get into the Room of Requirement?" Liza asked as she and Harry started up the marble stairs.

"Yes," Harry replied determinedly. "And don't try to talk me out of it."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Liza said. "See you later."

Liza went back up to the common room alone, where she found Neville sitting in front of the fire with homework laid out in front of him.

"I forgot that you're a summer birthday like me," Liza said, plopping down onto the couch next to him.

"Hi, Liza," Neville replied. "I haven't managed to Apparate yet, so I'm not missing too much."

"What are you working on?" Liza asked.

"Charms," Neville answered. "Have you finished this essay for Flitwick yet? I need three more inches…"

For the rest of the morning, Liza and Neville worked on their homework together. Then, when lunchtime came around, they went down to the Great Hall together. They had only been sitting at the Gryffindor table for a few minutes when Hermione and Ron showed up, as well.

"How was Apparition?" Liza asked as they sat down opposite of her and Neville.

"Brilliant," Ron said, beaming. "I actually managed to do it! I didn't reappear in exactly the right place, but I was only a bit off."

"Congratulations, Ron," Liza said.

"I bet it was nice to get out of the castle," Neville added.

A few minutes later, Neville left and Harry arrived. Harry took the seat next to Liza.

"I did it—well, kind of!" Ron announced immediately. "I was supposed to be Apparating to outside Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop and I overshot it a bit, ended up near Scrivenshaft's, but at least I moved!"

"Good one," Harry said. "How'd you do, Hermione?"

"Oh, she was perfect, obviously," Ron said. "Perfect deliberation, divination, and desperation or whatever the hell it is—" Liza snorted as Ron went on, "we all went for a quick drink in the Three Broomsticks after and you should've heard Twycross going on about her—I'll be surprised if he doesn't pop the question soon—"

"And what about you?" Hermione asked. "Have you been up at the Room of Requirement all this time?"

"Yep," Harry answered. "And guess who I ran into up there? Tonks!"

"Tonks?" Ron, Hermione, and Liza all echoed.

"Yeah, she said she'd come to visit Dumbledore," Harry said, and then he told them about the conversations he'd had with her.

"If you ask me, she's cracking up a bit," Ron said when Harry was finished. "Losing her nerve after what happened at the Ministry."

"It's a bit odd," Hermione said. "She's supposed to be guarding the school, why's she suddenly abandoning her post to come and see Dumbledore when he's not even here?"

"I had a thought," Harry began. "You don't think she can have been…you know…in love with Sirius?"

"What makes you say that?" Liza asked, frowning.

"I dunno," Harry said, "but she was nearly crying when I mentioned his name…and her Patronus is a big four-legged thing now… I wondered whether it hadn't become…you know…him."

"It's a thought," Hermione said. "But I still don't know why she'd be bursting into the castle to see Dumbledore, if that's really why she was here…"

"Goes back to what I said, doesn't it?" Ron said. "She's gone a bit funny. Lost her nerve. Women, they're easily upset."

"And yet, I doubt you'd find a _woman_ who sulked for half an hour because Madam Rosmerta didn't laugh at their joke about the hag, the Healer, and the _Mimbulus mimbletonia_."

Ron, blushing, went silently back to his lunch.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	17. Chapter 17 Luck

_**A/N: Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 17 – Luck**

A couple of weeks later, April twenty-first had arrived. The sixth years who were seventeen would take their Apparition tests that afternoon. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza were sitting outside after lunch as Ron and Hermione read through a Ministry of Magic leaflet about Apparition— _Common Apparition Mistakes and How to Avoid Them_.

Harry had been quietly brooding when Hermione finally snapped, "For the last time, just forget about Malfoy."

A girl entered the courtyard, and Ron immediately dove behind Hermione to hide.

"It isn't Lavender," Liza said for what she felt was the millionth time in the past few weeks.

"Oh, good," Ron sighed, relieved.

"Harry Potter?" the girl said, coming over to them. "I was asked to give this to you."

"Thanks…" Harry said, taking the scroll from her. She left again, and Harry looked anxiously at the parchment. "Dumbledore said we wouldn't be having any more lessons until I got the memory!"

"Maybe he wants to check on how you're doing?" Hermione said. Harry unrolled the scroll, his eyebrows furrowing as he read. After a minute, he handed the note over to Hermione.

"Look at this," he said. Hermione glanced at it.

"Oh, for heaven's sake," she said. She gave it to Ron, and Liza leaned over his shoulder to see that it was from Hagrid. There were blotches on the page where it looked like tears had fallen.

 _Dear Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza,_

 _Aragog died last night. Harry, Ron, Liza, you met him, and you know how special he was. Hermione, I know you'd have liked him. It would mean a lot to me if you'd nip down for the burial later this evening. I'm planning on doing it round dusk, that was his favorite time of day. I know you're not supposed to be out that late, but you can use the cloak. Wouldn't ask, but I can't face it alone._

 _Hagrid_

"He's _mental_!" Ron said as he gave the note back to Harry. "That thing told its mates to eat Harry, Liza, and me! Told them to help themselves! And now Hagrid expects us to go down there and cry over its horrible hairy body!"

"It's not just that," Hermione said. "He's asking us to leave the castle at night and he knows security's a million times tighter and how much trouble we'd be in if we were caught."

"We've been down to see him by night before," Harry said.

"Yeah, but for something like this?" Liza said. "We've risked a lot to help Hagrid before, but—Aragog's dead. If it was a question of saving him—"

"I'd want to go even less," Ron interrupted. "You remember what he was like. Being dead will have improved him a lot."

"To be fair, you have a bit of a bias when it comes to spiders," Liza added, smirking as Ron shuddered. Harry was looking at the parchment thoughtfully.

"Harry, you _can't_ be thinking of going," Hermione said. "It's such a pointless thing to get detention for."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said. "I s'pose Hagrid'll have to bury Aragog without us."

"Yes, he will," Hermione said, looking satisfied. "Look, Potions will be almost empty this afternoon, with us all off doing our tests… Try and soften Slughorn up a bit then!"

"Fifty-seventh time lucky, you think?" Harry said.

"Lucky," Ron repeated, perking up. "Harry, that's it—get lucky!"

"What d'you mean?" Harry asked. It dawned on Liza then what Ron meant.

"Ron, that's genius!" she exclaimed. "Harry—use your lucky potion!"

"That's—that's it!" Hermione said. "Of course! Why didn't I think of it?"

"Felix Felicis?" Harry said, looking unconvinced. "I dunno… I was sort of saving it…"

"What for?" Liza asked.

"What on earth it more important than this memory, Harry?" Hermione added. Harry didn't answer for a few minutes, staring off into the courtyard, and Hermione said, "Harry? You still with us?"

"Wha—? Yeah, of course," he said. "Well…okay. If I can't get Slughorn to talk this afternoon, I'll take some Felix and have another go this evening."

"That's decided, then," Hermione said. She stood up and spun on her toes. "Destination…determination…deliberation…"

"Oh, stop that," Ron said, "I feel sick enough as it is—quick, hide me!" He jumped behind Hermione again.

"It's isn't Lavender!" Hermione and Liza both said, looking at the group of girls entering the courtyard.

"Cool," Ron said. He looked over at the girls and added, "Blimey, they don't look happy, do they?"

"They're the Montgomery sisters and of course they don't look happy, didn't you hear what happened to their little brother?" Hermione said impatiently.

"I'm losing track of what's happening to everyone's relatives, to be honest," Ron said, shrugging.

"Their brother was attacked by a werewolf, wasn't he?" Liza said. Hermione nodded.

"The rumor is that their mother refused to help the Death Eaters," she said. "Anyway, the boy was only five and he died in St. Mungo's, they couldn't save him."

"He died?" Harry asked. "But surely werewolves don't kill, they just turn you into one of them?"

"They sometimes kill," Ron said. "I've heard of it happening when the werewolf gets carried away."

"What was the werewolf's name?" Harry questioned.

"Well, the rumor is that it was Fenrir Greyback," Hermione replied.

"I thought it might be him," Liza said angrily. "He's that maniac that likes to attack children, Lupin told me and Harry about him." Hermione looked sadly at Harry.

"Harry, you've got to get that memory," she said. "It's all about stopping Voldemort, isn't it? These dreadful things that are happening are all down to him…"

The bell rang, and Ron and Hermione were the first to jump to their feet. The four of them made their way to the Entrance Hall.

"You'll do fine," Harry reassured them.

"Good luck!" Liza said. Ron and Hermione waved and joined the group who were going to take the Apparition Test. John came over to Liza, looking nervous.

"Hi," he said.

"Hey," Liza replied, reaching up and pecking him on the cheek. "You'll pass, I know it."

"I'm glad one of us does," John said, running a hand through his hair. "It would be really nice to pass today."

"You've been Apparating for weeks now," Liza said reassuringly, rubbing his arm with her hand. "You can do this. I wish I could go with you."

"That's what you get for being born in July," John teased. Liza shook her head, smiling.

"I can't help when I was born," she quipped. "Now go on, before they leave you behind. Good luck."

"Thanks," John said. He kissed her briefly before going to join the group leaving the castle.

"This sucks," Liza said to Harry. "I want to go take my Apparition test."

"Me too," Harry agreed. "I better get to Potions. I'll see you after class." Liza nodded and waved as Harry left for the dungeons. Then she turned and went back up to the common room.

Harry returned after his class, letting Liza know that he had gotten nowhere with Slughorn.

"It was like his robes were on fire," Harry complained, slouching into the chair next to Liza's. "He couldn't get out of that classroom fast enough. I didn't even get a word in."

"Well, I guess you'll just have to try tonight," Liza said.

"I really wanted to save Felix for something more fun," Harry said grudgingly.

"Well, you really only need to be lucky for a few hours or so, right?" Liza said. "And Slughorn said that the amount in the bottle would give you half a days' worth… Maybe if you only drink a little bit of it, then you can save some for another time."

"Yeah, I suppose I could do that," Harry said. "Good idea."

It was nearly dinner time before Hermione and Ron showed up again. Hermione entered the common room first, bounding up to Harry and Liza.

"I passed!" she announced, looking proud.

"Nice one!" Liza said.

"Well done!" Harry added. "And Ron?"

"He—he _just_ failed," Hermione said quietly. Ron climbed into the portrait hole, looking upset, and Hermione continued, "It was really unlucky, a tiny thing, the examiner just spotted that he'd left half an eyebrow behind… How did it go with Slughorn?"

"No joy," Harry replied. Ron came over and slumped down into an open chair. "Bad luck, mate, but you'll pass next time—we can take it together."

"Yeah, I s'pose," Ron said. "But _half an eyebrow_! Like that matters!"

"I know," Hermione agreed, "it does seem really harsh…"

All throughout dinner, they cheered Ron up by talking about how horrible the examiner was. By the time they were heading back up to the common room for the evening, he was looking much happier.

"So, Harry—you going to use the Felix Felicis or what?" Ron asked as they sat down.

"Yeah, I s'pose I'd better," Harry sighed. "Liza and I were talking before you guys got back, we reckon I'll only need a few hours, so I don't need to drink all of it… I'll just take a mouthful. Two or three hours should do it."

"It's a great feeling when you take it," Ron said. "Like you can't do anything wrong."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione chuckled. "You've never taken any!"

"Yeah, but I _thought_ I had, didn't I?" Ron said. "Same difference really…"

"I don't know about that," Liza said, shaking her head with a laugh.

Dusk slowly fell outside. A little while later, the four of them went up to Harry's and Ron's dormitory, which was empty. Harry went to his trunk and pulled out a rolled-up sock. He carefully took the tiny bottle of Felix Felicis out of it.

"Well, here goes," Harry said. He put the bottle to his lips and took a drink. Liza, Hermione, and Ron waited anxiously as Harry swallowed.

"What does it feel like?" Liza asked curiously. Harry said nothing for another few moments. Then he got to his feet, grinning widely.

"Excellent," he said. "Really excellent. Right…I'm going down to Hagrid's."

"What?" Ron and Liza asked sharply.

"No, Harry—you've got to go and see Slughorn, remember?" Hermione said.

"No," Harry replied. "I'm going to Hagrid's, I've got a good feeling about going to Hagrid's."

"You've got a good feeling about burying a giant spider?" Ron asked.

"Yeah," Harry answered. He pulled his Invisibility Cloak out of his backpack. "I feel like it's the place to be tonight, you know what I mean?"

"No," Ron, Liza, and Hermione all said together.

"This _is_ Felix Felicis, right?" Liza said, picking up the potion bottle and holding it up to examine the contents. "You haven't got another little bottle full of—I don't know—"

"Essence of Insanity?" Ron cut in. Harry laughed, and Liza exchanged concerned looks with Hermione and Ron.

"Trust me," Harry assured them. "I know what I'm doing…or at least, Felix does." He pulled his cloak over his head, disappearing. The dormitory door opened as he left the room.

"Harry, wait!" Liza called, and she, Ron, and Hermione hurried towards the stairs. There was no way to catch up with him now that he was invisible, however, and when they reached the common room, the three of them stopped.

"What were you doing up there with _her_?" Lavender stomped over to Ron, looking angry.

"C'mon," Liza said quietly to Hermione, pulling her friend away. They left Ron with Lavender and took a seat at an empty table.

"I hope Harry knows what he's doing," Hermione moaned.

"I'm sure he does," Liza said. She looked over at Ron and Lavender for a moment. Lavender was still talking animatedly, waving her arms in the air and looking upset. Ron looked annoyed as he answered her.

"Well, I did it." Ginny had appeared, plopping down into a chair at their table.

"You did what?" Liza asked, slightly alarmed. Ginny made a face at her.

"I split up with Dean," Ginny explained. "I should have done it ages back, I think I just got comfortable with having him around."

"What happened?" Hermione asked.

"He was trying to help me through the portrait hole again," Ginny said, rolling her eyes. "I don't know how many times I've told him that I don't need or want his help, but he kept insisting. And obviously, it's not just that, but this is what's pushed me to finally end it."

"Well, as long as you're happy, that's what matters," Liza said, nodding. "You are happy, aren't you?"

"Yes," Ginny replied. "I need to start concentrating on my O.W.L.s anyway. Mind if I sit with you for a while?" Liza and Hermione both shook their heads.

A few minutes later, Ron joined them, as well.

"We've split up," he reported, sounding relieved. He seemed to be trying to hide a smile, as well. "She thought I was up in my dorm with just you two and said she'd had enough of my 'sneaking around.'"

"But you weren't sneaking around!" Hermione said, aghast.

"I know," Ron said. "She doesn't believe me, though. Mind you, I'm glad to be shot of her." Liza rolled her eyes.

"You should have dumped her weeks ago," she said. "I don't know why you couldn't get up the courage to do so."

"I told you before, every time I tried to hint at ending it, she just held on tighter," Ron said. "But it's over now."

"I've split up with Dean," Ginny told her brother.

"Really?" Ron asked, looking pleased. "Why?"

"Oh, lots of reasons," Ginny replied. "I think I just need some time to be by myself. Concentrate on my schoolwork, you know."

A few hours later, Ginny left for her dormitory, leaving Ron, Hermione, and Liza alone to wait for Harry.

"I hope he's all right," Hermione said anxiously, looking towards the portrait hole.

"Yeah, imagine if Felix Felicis wore off and he got caught out of bed," Liza said, frowning. "I thought he'd be back by now."

"Well, it's no use sitting up waiting for him," Hermione said, covering her mouth as she yawned. "We still have classes to attend in the morning. I'm going to head up to bed."

"I think I will, too," Liza agreed. "Ron?"

"Yeah, see you in the morning," Ron said, and Liza followed Hermione from the common room.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The next morning, Harry did not join them at breakfast, but Ron was quick to reassure Liza and Hermione that Harry had made it back to their dormitory. They didn't see him until Charms, their first class of the day. They were meant to be turning a goblet of vinegar into wine, but Harry immediately cast _Muffliato_ on those around them so he could tell them what had happened the night before.

He told them first about running into Slughorn on his way down to Hagrid's and convincing the Potions professor to come along. Then he explained how he'd managed to persuade Slughorn into giving him the memory, to the delight of his friends.

"That's brilliant, Harry!" Liza exclaimed, grinning at her brother.

"That's not all," Harry said, and he continued his story. He told them that he'd gone up to Dumbledore's office to present the memory. Then he told them about the Horcruxes, and that Dumbledore had promised to let Harry go along to help destroy the next one.

"Wow," Ron said. He was waving his wand without paying attention to it; big, fat snowflakes were beginning to fall from the ceiling. "Wow. You're actually going to go with Dumbledore…and try and destroy…wow."

"Ron, you're making it snow," Hermione said, taking hold of his wrist. Lavender Brown, who was sitting at the table next to theirs, glared over at Hermione through slightly red eyes.

"Oh yeah," Ron said, noticing the snow that had fallen on their shoulders. "Sorry…looks like we've all got horrible dandruff now…" He reached over and brushed some of the snow from Hermione's shoulder, and Lavender started sobbing.

"We split up," Ron murmured to Harry, looking guilty. "Last night. When she saw me coming out of the dormitory with Hermione and Liza. Obviously she couldn't see you, so she thought it had just been the three of us."

"Ah," Harry said. "Well—you don't mind it's over, do you?"

"No," Ron said. "It was pretty bad while she was yelling but at least I didn't have to finish it."

"Coward," Liza said, shaking her head. "Well, it was a bad night for romance all around. Ginny and Dean broke up too, Harry."

"How come?" Harry asked immediately.

"Oh, something really silly…" Hermione said. "She said he was always trying to help her through the portrait hole, like she couldn't climb in herself…"

"But they've been rocky for months now," Liza said, shrugging. "I think all the little things had been building up for quite a while."

"Of course, this puts you in a bit of a dilemma, doesn't it?" Hermione said.

"What d'you mean?" Harry asked quickly.

"The Quidditch team," Hermione said, with an air that that should have been obvious. "If Ginny and Dean aren't speaking…"

"Oh—oh yeah," Harry said.

"Flitwick," Ron said suddenly. Professor Flitwick was indeed walking over to their table. Hermione and Liza had managed to turn their vinegar into wine already, but neither of the boys had been trying very hard.

"Now, now, boys," Professor Flitwick said. "A little less talk, a little more action… Let me see you try…" Harry and Ron complied, both waving their wands and pointing them at their goblets. Harry's vinegar turned to ice, and Ron's cup exploded. Professor Flitwick, Hermione, and Liza all ducked.

"Yes…for homework," Professor Flitwick said, emerging from under the table, " _practice_."

After Charms class was a free period for all four of them. They went back up to the common room where they found a group of seventh years huddled together, looking ecstatic. In the middle of the group stood Katie Bell, looking fully healed.

"Katie!" Hermione exclaimed. "You're back! Are you okay?"

"I'm really well," Katie answered, smiling happily. "They let me out of St. Mungo's on Monday, I had a couple of days at home with Mum and Dad and then came back here this morning. Leanne was just telling me about McLaggen and the last match, Harry…"

"Yeah," Harry said, "well, now you're back and Ron's fit, we'll have a decent chance of thrashing Ravenclaw, which means we could still be in the running for the Cup. Listen, Katie…" Harry lowered his voice while Katie's friends gathered up their things. "That necklace…can you remember who gave it to you now?"

"No," Katie replied, her face falling slightly. "Everyone's been asking me, but I haven't got a clue. The last thing I remember was walking into the ladies' in the Three Broomsticks."

"You definitely went into the bathroom, then?" Liza asked.

"Well, I know I pushed open the door," Katie answered, "so I suppose whoever Imperiused me was standing just behind it. After that, my memory's a blank until about two weeks ago in St. Mungo's. Listen, I'd better go, I wouldn't put it past McGonagall to give me lines even if it is my first day back…" She gave them a little wave before hurrying after her friends.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Liza went over to a table near a window and sat down.

"So it must have been a girl or a woman who gave Katie the necklace," Hermione said, "to be in the ladies' bathroom."

"Or someone who looked like a girl or a woman," Harry said. "Don't forget, there was a cauldron full of Polyjuice Potion at Hogwarts. We know some of it got stolen…" Then, looking determined, he said, "I think I'm going to have another swig of Felix and have a go at the Room of Requirement again."

"That would be a complete waste, Harry," Liza said. "Luck can only get you so far."

"The situation with Slughorn was different; you always had the ability to persuade him, you just needed to tweak the circumstances a bit," Hermione went on. "Luck isn't enough to get you through a powerful enchantment, though."

"Don't go wasting the rest of that potion!" Liza warned as Harry scowled. "You'll need all the luck you can get if Dumbledore takes you along with him."

"Couldn't we make some more?" Ron suggested. "It'd be great of have a stock of it… Have a look in the book…" Harry pulled his Potions book from his bag and flipped open to the correct page.

"Blimey, it's seriously complication," he said. "And it takes six months… You've got to let it stew…"

"Typical," Ron said.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

As May continued, the weeks crept slowly forward to the last Quidditch match of the season. The Gryffindors were quite excited for it, because if they won, they had a chance to win the Quidditch Cup. There was the usual taunting in the hallways between the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, and the entire school was happy for the distraction from the bad news the _Prophet_ was reporting daily.

Then, a few days before the match, disaster struck.

Liza, Hermione, and Ginny were sitting in the common room and working on their homework when Harry sprinted into the room. Liza realized with a jolt that he was splattered with blood.

"Harry!" Liza called, but Harry ran past their table without stopping and went up the stairs to his dormitory.

"Why is he covered in blood?" Ginny asked, looking worried. About a minute later, Harry came back down and rushed past them again.

"Harry, what—?" Hermione started, but Harry was already heading for the portrait hole. Ron joined them at their table, sinking into an open chair.

"What the hell was that about?" Liza asked. She turned to Ron and added, "Did you see Harry?"

"Yes," Ron answered. "He wanted my Potions book…"

"Liza!" Sally-Anne came up to their table, looking concerned. "Have you heard what happened with Harry?"

"No," Liza said immediately. Hermione, Ron, and Ginny all perked up as well.

"Anna Mirfield just told me that Moaning Myrtle's been telling everyone she can find," Sally-Anne said. "Harry and Draco Malfoy had a fight in one of the bathrooms. Apparently Harry hit Malfoy with a curse that really injured him."

"He _what_?" Liza asked loudly.

"Snape arrived just in time to help Malfoy to the hospital wing," Sally-Anne said. "He looked like he was going to be fine, but Snape was livid."

"Snape's always livid at Harry for something," Ron commented.

"But why would Harry attack Malfoy?" Hermione asked in a small voice.

"From the sounds of it, they were having a duel," Sally-Anne said. "Malfoy was trying to curse Harry as well." Hermione and Liza looked at each other, lost for words.

After dinner, Harry reappeared in the common room and hollowly told Ron, Hermione, Liza, and Ginny what exactly had happened. He also told them that he'd been given detentions every Saturday for the rest of the school year. Ginny was going to play Seeker that weekend in the Quidditch match, and Dean was going to play Chaser in her spot.

"I won't say 'I told you so,'" Hermione said eventually.

"Leave it, Hermione," Ron snapped.

"I told you there was something wrong with that Prince person," Hermione continued, ignoring Ron. "And I was right, wasn't I?"

"No, I don't think you were," Harry said.

"Harry, how can you still stick up for that book when that spell—" Hermione began.

"Will you stop harping on about the book!" Harry said angrily. "The Prince only copied it out! It's not like he was advising anyone to use it! For all we know, he was making a note of something that had been used against him!"

"Hermione, please stop," Liza said quietly, but Hermione was staring incredulously at Harry.

"I don't believe this," she said. "You're actually defending—"

"I'm not defending what I did!" Harry said. "I wish I hadn't done it, and not just because I've got about a dozen detentions. You know I wouldn't've used a spell like that, not even on Malfoy, but you can't blame the Prince, he hadn't written 'try this out, it's really good'—he was just making notes for himself, wasn't he, not for anyone else…"

"Are you telling me that you're going to go back—?" Hermione asked.

"And get the book? Yeah, I am," Harry answered. "Listen, without the Prince I'd have never won the Felix Felicis. I'd never have known how to save Ron from poisoning, I'd never have—"

"—got a reputation for Potions brilliances you don't deserve," Hermione finished for him.

"Give it a rest, Hermione!" Ginny spoke up. "By the sound of it, Malfoy was trying to use an Unforgivable Curse, you should be glad Harry had something good up his sleeve!"

"Well, of course I'm glad Harry wasn't cursed!" Hermione said. "But you can't call that Sectumsempra spell good, Ginny, look where it's landed him! And I'd have thought, seeing what this has done to your chances in the match—"

"Oh, don't start acting as though you understand Quidditch," Ginny said, "you'll only embarrass yourself."

"All right, enough," Liza said swiftly. Hermione and Ginny were glaring in opposite directions, their arms folded over their chests. Liza sighed and added, "I think we can all agree that next time any of us comes across a spell without an explanation as to what it does, we'll know to not try it on anyone. Right, Harry?"

"Right," Harry muttered, still looking guilty.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

The morning of the match arrived, much to the school's excitement. After breakfast, Liza and her friends watched as Harry glumly parted with them for the dungeons. Liza felt bad that he had to miss the last game of the year; Snape could have given him detentions any other day of the week.

So Liza joined her small group of friends—Hermione, John, Neville, Sally-Anne, and Oliver Rivers, the Hufflepuff boy that Sally-Anne had been dating for a few weeks—and they all went down to the pitch together. They took their places in the stands among the Gryffindor supporters.

A few minutes later, the two teams were marching out onto the field. Ginny, who had been appointed as acting Captain for the match, shook hands with Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw Captain. Then Madam Hooch blew her whistle, and fourteen bodies flew into the air; the game was on.

The Gryffindor team was in top form, something Liza knew Harry would be proud of. Ron was making saves left and right, and the three Chasers were constantly scoring. The Gryffindor crowd was ecstatic, cheering and stamping their feet.

The Ravenclaws put up a good fight, but it just wasn't good enough. The Gryffindors seemed more determined than ever to win. And ninety minutes into the game, Ginny caught the Snitch, holding it up triumphantly as the Gryffindor supporters exploded with screams.

"They did it!" Hermione shouted, jumping up and down. "They actually did it!"

"No need to sound so surprised, 'Mione," Liza said, laughing. She watched as Cho and the rest of the Ravenclaw team landed, looking dejected.

Gryffindors were flooding the field, running over to their team, who were landing in a giant group hug. Liza, after a quick kiss goodbye with John, ran to join them. The Gryffindor team was lifted into the air as they were presented with the Quidditch Cup. Then, the massive herd Gryffindors marched their way back up to the castle.

The celebration started immediately. Everyone took a chance to admire the Cup. Soon, there were drinks and snacks that had appeared from somewhere, and the party was in full swing.

Liza hadn't noticed how much time had passed until Hermione pulled her aside.

"How long do you think Snape will keep Harry?" Hermione asked.

"No idea," Liza said. "What time is it now?"

"It's one o'clock," Hermione answered. "I mean, three hours is a long time to serve a detention, depending on what he's doing."

"I'm sure Snape wouldn't keep him all day," Liza said, although as soon as she said it, she started to doubt it. Snape was not known for being particularly fair, especially when it came to Harry.

But Liza's worries were squashed when, about half an hour later, the portrait hole opened. There were screams of delight as those nearest the entrance pulled a gaping Harry into the common room.

"We won!" Ron shouted, holding up the cup and shaking it. "We won! Four hundred and fifty to a hundred and forty! We won!" There were more cheers which turned into surprised silence.

Ginny had hurried through the crowd to reach Harry, who had pulled her close and kissed her in front of everyone. Liza felt her jaw drop a bit, and she glanced at Hermione. Hermione shot her back a knowing look.

Liza looked back at Harry and Ginny, who had pulled apart after a few seconds. There was some giggling and whistling. Harry's eyes darted around the common room, landing on Liza's for only a fraction of a second before flicking away again. He finally looked at Ron, who seemed very shocked. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Ron jerked his head to one side.

With that, Harry and Ginny left the common room together, and Liza let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"Did that just happen?" she asked Hermione.

"Yes," Hermione giggled. "I knew he fancied her."

"You _knew_?" Liza said. "I mean, I had my suspicions, sure—he was always so interested when Ginny and Dean fought—"

"I thought he was being rather obvious about it," Hermione admitted. Ron stumbled over to them.

"My best mate and my _sister_?" he asked. "When did that happen?"

"You just saw it happen," Liza said in amusement.

"But—my best mate—and my sister!" Ron sputtered.

"Would you really want her to be with anyone else?" Hermione asked.

"I—I guess not," Ron said in defeat.

"We know, nobody's good enough for your sister," Liza said, patting Ron on the arm. "But don't worry; Harry will treat her the way she deserves to be treated. And if he doesn't, she can take care of herself."

"Everything will be fine, Ron," Hermione added reassuringly.

"Yeah, they'll only be snogging all the time," Liza said teasingly. Ron threw his hands over his ears.

"I'm not listening to this!" he moaned, and he hurried away from the girls, who laughed at his retreating form.

 **~LJ:HWA~**


	18. Chapter 18 Stake Out

_**A/N: This chapter is kind of short because it was originally part of the next chapter, and I needed to split it up because it was becoming too long.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 18 – Stake Out**

The news about Harry and Ginny traveled quickly, and by the next morning, nearly everyone knew about it. Liza joined Sally-Anne, Oliver, and John for breakfast at the Gryffindor table.

"I hear Harry's dating Ginny now," Oliver said conversationally as soon as Liza and Sally-Anne sat down.

"I guess so," Liza said. "I haven't asked him if they're actually dating or not, but I assume they are."

"A bunch of the third year girls in my House were disappointed," Oliver reported. Liza chuckled.

"Everyone wants to date 'the Chosen One,'" Sally-Anne said, shaking her head.

Over the next few weeks, the school was constantly talking about Harry's and Ginny's new relationship. Liza was getting a bit tired of people coming up to her and asking about it. There were quite a few girls who liked to ask her if Harry and Ginny had split up yet.

"You'd think people had better things to gossip about," Ginny said in the common room one evening. She was sitting on the floor and leaning against Harry's legs as she read the _Daily Prophet_. "Three dementor attacks in a week, and all Romilda Vane does is ask me if it's true you've got a hippogriff tattooed across your chest." Ron, Hermione, and Liza all laughed loudly at this.

"What did you tell her?" Harry asked.

"I told her it's a Hungarian Horntail," Ginny replied. "Much more macho."

"Thanks," Harry said. "And what did you tell her Ron's got?" Ron stopped laughing at once.

"A Pygmy Puff, but I didn't say where," Ginny answered. Liza and Hermione continued to laugh.

"Watch it," Ron growled, pointing at Harry and Ginny. "Just because I've given my permission doesn't mean I can't withdraw it—"

"' _Your permission_ ,'" Ginny said mockingly. "Since when did you give me permission to do anything? Anyway, you said yourself you'd rather it was Harry than Michael or Dean."

"Yeah, I would," Ron agreed. "And just as long as you don't start snogging each other in public—"

"You filthy hypocrite!" Ginny snorted. "What about you and Lavender, thrashing around like a pair of eels all over the place?" Ron scowled.

"She's got a point, Ron," Liza said. "Just because you are no longer in a relationship doesn't mean that those of us who are can't enjoy ourselves."

 **~LJ:HWA~**

June had arrived, bringing with it the anxiety over final exams. The fifth and seventh years were the most stressed, for they would be taking their O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s in only a couple weeks. Because of this, Harry and Ginny didn't have much time to spend together. Harry spent many of his evenings with his friends in the common room, while Ginny was up late in the library.

"I want to talk to you, Harry," Hermione said one night.

"What about?" Harry asked cautiously.

"The so-called Half-Blood Prince," Hermione answered.

"Oh, not again," Harry moaned. "Will you please drop it?" Contrary to what he had said before, Harry had never gone back to retrieve his book from wherever he'd hidden it.

"I'm not dropping it," Hermione said stubbornly, "until you've heard me out. Now, I've been trying to find out a bit about who might make a hobby of inventing Dark spells—"

"He didn't make a hobby of it—" Harry jumped in.

"He, he—who says it's a he?" Hermione asked.

"We've been through this," Harry replied. " _Prince_ , Hermione, _Prince_!"

"Right!" Hermione snapped. She pulled out an old page from a newspaper and put it on the table in front of Harry. "Look at that! Look at the picture!" Harry, Ron, and Liza all leaned over to look at the page. It was a picture of a girl, with a caption that read EILEEN PRINCE, CAPTAIN OF THE HOGWARTS GOBSTONES TEAM.

"So?" Harry asked.

"Her name was Eileen Prince. _Prince_ , Harry," Hermione said. There was a moment of silence before Harry started to laugh.

"No way," he said.

"What?" Hermione asked, looking surprised.

"You think _she_ was the Half-Blood…? Oh, come on," Harry guffawed.

"Well, why not?" Liza asked, intrigued about this new development.

"Harry, there aren't any real princes in the Wizarding world!" Hermione said. "It's either a nickname, a made-up title somebody's given themselves, or it could be their actual name, couldn't it? No, listen! If, say, her father was a wizard whose surname was Prince, and her mother was a Muggle, then that would make her a 'half-blood Prince'!"

"Yeah, very ingenious, Hermione…" Harry said, still unconvinced.

"But it would!" Hermione insisted. "Maybe she was proud of being half a Prince!"

"Listen, Hermione, I can tell it's not a girl," Harry said. "I can just tell."

"You just don't think a girl would have been clever enough," Liza said, narrowing her eyes at him.

"How can you think that?" Harry asked, looking taken aback. "It's the way he writes, I just know the Prince was a bloke, I can tell. This girl hasn't got anything to do with it."

"You _can't_ tell," Liza said angrily. "You can't tell just by someone's handwriting whether they're a boy or a girl."

"Look, I just know it," Harry said grudgingly. He turned back to Hermione and asked, "Where did you get this anyway?"

"The library," Hermione said. "There's a whole collection of old _Prophets_ up there, and I'm going to find out more about Eileen Prince if I can."

"Enjoy yourself," Harry said.

"I will," Hermione replied hotly. "And the first place I'll look is records of old Potions awards!" She turned and hurried away.

"She's just never got over you outperforming her in Potions," Ron said. Liza shook her head, although she knew there was a bit of truth to his statement. She had watched many times as Hermione seethed quietly about Harry quickly becoming top of the class.

"You don't think I'm mad, wanting that book back, do you?" Harry asked.

"'Course not," Ron said immediately. "He was a genius, the Prince. Anyway…without his bezoar tip…" He drew his finger across his throat. "I wouldn't be here to discuss it, would I? I mean, I'm not saying that spell you used on Malfoy was great—"

"Nor am I," Harry agreed.

"But he healed all right, didn't he?" Ron continued. "Back on his feet in no time."

"Yeah," Harry said. "Thanks to Snape…"

"You still have detention with him this Saturday?" Liza asked.

"Yeah, and the Saturday after that, and the Saturday after that," Harry said. "And he's hinting now that if I don't get all the boxes done by the end of term, we'll carry on next year."

"Can detentions carry over to the next year?" Liza asked, frowning.

"I have no idea," Harry said, "but I'm sure Snape will try and find a way…"

They were quiet for a few moments before Jimmy Peaks came up to their table. He had a scroll clutched in his hand, and he gave it to Harry.

"Thanks, Jimmy," Harry said. Jimmy left, and Harry unrolled the scroll. "Hey, it's from Dumbledore! He wants me to go to his office as quick as I can!" Liza and Ron exchanged significant looks.

"Blimey," Ron breathed.

"You don't think he's found…?" Liza trailed off.

"Better go and see, hadn't I?" Harry said. He hopped out of his chair and bolted from the common room. Liza and Ron looked at each other again, but they didn't know what to say about what had just happened.

Hermione returned to the common room about half an hour later.

"So, did you find Eileen Prince in any old Potions records?" Liza asked.

"No," Hermione said glumly. "Where's Harry gone?"

"He got a note from Dumbledore," Ron said. "Said he wanted to meet with him right away."

"But—" Hermione gasped. "Does that mean—?"

"We don't know," Liza said. "The note didn't say what Dumbledore wanted. But Harry's been gone for nearly half an hour now…"

Suddenly Harry burst into the common room, his eyes wide but otherwise looking determined.

"What does he want?" Hermione asked immediately.

"Harry, are you okay?" Liza added, concerned.

"I'm fine," Harry replied, running past them and disappearing up the boys' staircase.

"What was that all about?" Ron asked.

A few short minutes later, Harry reentered the common room. He was holding the Marauder's Map and a pair of socks.

"I've got to be quick," he explained. "Dumbledore thinks I'm getting my Invisibility Cloak. Listen…" He told them what had happened in Dumbledore's office and where they were heading.

"…so you see what this means?" he finished. "Dumbledore won't be here tonight, so Malfoy's going to have another clear shot at whatever he's up to. _No, listen to me_!" he snapped before Liza, Ron, or Hermione could say anything. "I know it was Malfoy celebrating in the Room of Requirement. Here—" He pushed the map into Hermione's hands. "You've got to watch him and you've got to watch Snape too. Use anyone else who you can rustle up from the D.A., Hermione, those contact Galleons will still work, right? Dumbledore says he's put extra protection in the school, but if Snape's involved, he'll know what Dumbledore's protection is, and how to avoid it—but he won't be expecting you lot to be on the watch, will he?"

"Harry—" Liza tried to say.

"I haven't got time to argue," Harry interrupted. "Take this as well—" He handed the socks to Ron.

"Thanks," Ron said. "Er—why do I need socks?"

"You need what's wrapped in them, it's the Felix Felicis," Harry said. "Share it between yourselves and Ginny too. Say good-bye to her for me. I'd better go, Dumbledore's waiting—"

"No!" Hermione said as Ron pulled the little bottle of Felix Felicis from the socks. "We don't want it, you take it, who knows what you're going to be facing?"

"I'll be fine, I'll be with Dumbledore," Harry stated. "I want to know you lot are okay… Don't look like that, Hermione, I'll see you later…" And then he was going towards the portrait hole.

"Wait!" Liza shouted, jumping up and running over to him. She pulled him into a fierce hug. "Come back in one piece," she murmured. Harry pulled away, nodding once, before turning and leaving through the portrait hole.

Liza looked around at Ron and Hermione.

"What do we do?" she asked them.

"We have to check the map," Ron said. "Give it here, Hermione."

"Let's just think about this for a minute," Hermione said, seeming hesitant to hand the map over.

"There's nothing to think about, Hermione!" Ron said impatiently. "Harry said that Trelawney heard Malfoy celebrating in the Room of Requirement—"

"But Trelawney never saw Malfoy, did she?" Hermione said, still holding the map out of Ron's reach. Liza snatched it out of her fingers and unfolded it. She pulled her wand out.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," she recited. Hermione frowned, and Liza shot her an apologetic look before saying, "Start looking for Malfoy's name."

The three of them bent over the map, squinting at the names moving about on the parchment. They looked for nearly ten minutes before Ron sat back in his seat, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands.

"I can't find his name anywhere," he said. "He must be in the Room of Requirement, there's no other explanation." Liza nodded in agreement, but Hermione remained glued to the map.

"Hermione, he's not on there," Liza said gently. "He's gotta be in the Room, unless he left the grounds somehow." Hermione sighed, finally pulling away from the map.

"All right," she said. "But we need to make a plan."

"Ooh, a plan?" a voice said from behind them. "A plan for what?" Liza turned to see Sally-Anne standing there, smiling pleasantly.

"Nothing," Ron said quickly, standing up and attempting to shield the map from Sally-Anne's gaze. His movements, however, brought Sally-Anne's attention to it, and her eyes widened.

"What is that?" she asked.

"It's nothing," Hermione repeated.

"It looks like a map," Sally-Anne said, ignoring them and trying to get a closer look. Hermione and Ron looked at Liza pleadingly.

"It is a map," Liza said, surprising both Hermione and Ron. "It's a map of Hogwarts, and it's very old. It shows where everyone is in the castle." Sally-Anne's jaw dropped.

"Oh, please let me see it," she begged.

"Ron, let her look at it," Liza said. Ron frowned but moved out of the way.

"What are you doing?" Ron hissed at Liza as Sally-Anne took a closer look.

"I'm not lying to my other friends again," Liza shot back. "Last time I kept something from one of my friends, I didn't talk to him for nearly six months." Ron opened his mouth to argue, but Liza stopped him, saying, "Listen, if Malfoy is up to something, it'll be nice to have backup, won't it?"

"Malfoy's up to something?" Sally-Anne asked, having finished looking over the map.

"We think he might be up to something, yes," Liza said, turning back to her friend. "Harry thinks that Malfoy might have something to do with the necklace that cursed Katie and the poison that Ron drank."

"Really?" Sally-Anne said curiously. "Why does he think that?"

"Harry thinks Malfoy's possibly a Death Eater," Liza added, shrugging. "But the main point is that Dumbledore is going to be out of the castle tonight, giving Malfoy a clear shot at whatever he's been attempting to do."

"I think that the extra security will be more than sufficient to stop Malfoy from doing anything," Hermione cut in.

"You heard Harry, Snape might be helping him," Ron argued.

"So you think Malfoy and Snape are up to something together?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Possibly," Liza answered.

Then Ginny entered the common room with a couple of other fifth-year girls. Hermione immediately waved her over, and Ginny said good-bye to her friends before joining the others.

"Hi," she said. "Where's Harry?"

"With Dumbledore," Liza answered. "Listen, Ginny, we think that Malfoy might be up to something. We think he's been responsible for both Katie's and Ron's accidents this year, and now he might be using Dumbledore's absence as an excuse to try something again."

"We need to go stake out the Room of Requirement," Ron said impatiently. "We're losing time, Malfoy could leave the room any minute."

"What's the Room of Requirement?" Sally-Anne asked.

"It's where Malfoy's been hiding whatever he's doing," Liza answered quickly. Then she looked at Hermione and said, "You still have your D.A. coin, right? We need to see if we can get anyone else to help us."

"I still don't think—" Hermione started anxiously.

"'Mione, please," Liza said. Hermione was silent for a few seconds before saying, "All right." She got up and went to the girls' staircase, and returned a few minutes later with her D.A. coin in hand.

"Did you send the message?" Ron asked. Hermione nodded. "Then let's get going."

"Well, what are we going to do?" Hermione asked, looking surprised. "Are we just going to sit outside the Room of Requirement until Malfoy comes out?"

"What choice do we have?" Liza said, shrugging. There was a shout, and they all turned to see Neville hurrying over to them. His D.A. coin was clenched in his hand.

"I got the message," he said breathlessly. "What's happening?" Liza quickly briefed him on the situation.

"Let's go!" Ron insisted. Liza looked at Sally-Anne.

"You don't have to come with us," Liza said. "There's a chance this is a complete wild goose chase."

"I want to come," Sally-Anne said. "If Malfoy is up to something, you guys will need some backup, right?"

"This isn't your fight," Ron said coolly.

"If Malfoy is doing something on You-Know-Who's orders, it's everyone's fight," Sally-Anne shot back. Ron opened his mouth to argue, but Liza silenced him with a glare.

"If she wants to come and help, she can," Liza said shortly. "Now come on, let's go." The six of them left the common room.

The corridors were empty as they made their way up to the seventh floor and the Room of Requirement. They reached the correct hall in only a few minutes, and not long after they arrived, Luna Lovegood showed up.

"I got the message on my coin," she said simply. She didn't bother to ask why they had called her.

"We can't all stand out here in the hall," Hermione said. "Seven of us just standing around? If anyone walks by, they're going to be suspicious."

"We need someone to go and watch Snape," Ron said, looking at the map. "Look, he's in his office right now. You can go do that if you want, Hermione." Hermione sighed.

"I don't really want to," she said. "Someone will come with me, though, right?"

"I will," Luna volunteered immediately.

"Okay, so Hermione and Luna will keep an eye on Snape," Liza said, "and the rest of us will keep a watch on the Room of Requirement. Any problems with that?" There was murmured agreement to the plan, and Ron pulled the bottle of Felix Felicis from his pocket.

"Here," he said, holding it out to Hermione and Luna. "Take a quick swig of this." Hermione and Luna both took a drink and then set off for the dungeons. Ron offered the little bottle to the rest of the group.

"What is this?" Sally-Anne asked, taking the bottle from Liza.

"Felix Felicis," Liza answered. "Liquid Luck. Harry won it in Potions class at the beginning of the year, and he figured we might need some luck tonight." Sally-Anne shrugged and took her drink of the potion. Ginny and Neville also took a drink, but before Ron could raise the bottle to his mouth, there was a shout of, "Liza!"

"John!" Liza exclaimed, watching as her boyfriend hurried up to them.

"I just ran into Hermione and Luna," he said. "They told me you were staking out the Room of Requirement for Malfoy." Liza nodded, and Ron offered John the potion without a word. "Felix Felicis?" John asked, taking the bottle.

"Take a drink, if you're planning to stay," Liza said, nodding. "We don't know what Malfoy's up to, but we're going to need all the luck we can get."

"Now there are six of us again," Ginny said after Ron drained the last of the potion into his mouth.

"We'll just split up," Liza said. "You, Ron, and Neville stay down here, and John, Sally-Anne, and I will go down there." She motioned towards the other end of the hallway. "That way when Malfoy leaves the Room, we've got him cornered on both ends of the corridor." The others agreed, and Liza led Sally-Anne and John to the other side of the corridor.

"So where's Harry, if he's not here leading the stake out?" John asked.

"He's with Dumbledore," Liza answered. "I really can't tell you more than that," she added when Sally-Anne and John had looked at her expectantly.

"I'm not surprised," John said, smiling slightly. "It's just one secret after the other with you guys sometimes."

"So why does Harry think Malfoy is a Death Eater?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Harry, Ron, and Hermione saw him during the summer in Knockturn Alley," Liza replied. "That's where it all started. There have just been little things adding up all year."

"Well, why does he think Snape might be helping Malfoy?" Sally-Anne pressed.

"Harry overheard them talking at Slughorn's Christmas party," Liza explained. "Snape said that he'd made an Unbreakable Vow to Malfoy's mother to protect Malfoy. Harry says Snape was offering Malfoy his assistance with something."

"And how do you know that he's in this Room of Requirement?" Sally-Anne questioned.

"The Room of Requirement only appears in a specific way," Liza said. "People who are in the Room don't show up on the Marauder's Map."

"That's the map that shows where everyone in Hogwarts is," Sally-Anne said.

"Yes," Liza confirmed.

"Okay," Sally-Anne said. "Bring it on, Malfoy." Liza smiled and settled back against the stone wall to wait.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: Posting the next chapter right away because, like I said, this one and that one were going to be one whole chapter.**_


	19. Chapter 19 Death Eaters Victorious

_**A/N: Here's basically the second part of the previous chapter. Enjoy!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 19 – Death Eaters Victorious**

An hour passed before anything happened.

"Is that a door?" John asked suddenly, looking intently at the wall. Liza and Sally-Anne turned their heads sharply to look where John was staring. Sure enough, a door had appeared.

"Ron!" Liza called, but Ron, Ginny, and Neville were already on their feet with their wands drawn. The door opened and a blond head poked out into the corridor.

Then, suddenly, everything went dark.

" _Lumos_!" Liza said, waving her wand. Nothing seemed to happen.

"What's going on?" Sally-Anne asked from somewhere nearby. "Liza, are you still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," Liza said. "John, are you here, too?"

"Yes," John answered. Liza felt a hand grab hers, and she immediately recognized it as John's.

"Sally-Anne?" Liza asked, groping in the darkness to where Sally-Anne had been before it had gone dark. After a few seconds, she grabbed what felt like a wrist. There was a small shriek, and Liza quickly said, "It's just me! I've got your arm."

"Oh good," Sally-Anne sighed, relieved.

"C'mon, we need to find the others," Liza said. "Ginny! Ron! Neville!"

"I've found the wall," Sally-Anne said. "We can make our way down the hallway until we find the others."

"You'll have to lead the way, then," Liza said. "Keep your wand out." Sally-Anne moved forward, tugging Liza behind her, with Liza pulling John along.

After a few minutes of careful walking, they could hear scuffling.

"Ginny?" Liza called. "Ron? Neville?"

"Liza?" Ginny called back, sounding very near to her.

"What happened?" Liza asked. "Why did it go so dark all of a sudden? I tried to light my wand, but I still can't see anything."

"Peruvian Darkness Powder," Ron said, also sounding close by. "Fred and George sell it in their shop. No light can get through it, and we can't get rid of it, either."

"Well, we need to get to a corridor with light so we can see where Malfoy went," Ginny said.

"So it was definitely Malfoy?" Liza asked.

"Yeah, and he had his Hand of Glory with him," Ron said. "Gives light only to the holder, so he'd be able to get through this stuff. But he wasn't alone."

"What?" Liza asked sharply.

"Death Eaters," Ginny said. "We could see them behind Malfoy in the doorway just before he threw that powder in the air. We need to get out of here, now."

It took a few more minutes, but soon they stumbled into a lit-up corridor.

"Where do you think they went?" Ginny asked after they regrouped.

"Liza?" a voice from nearby asked. "Ron? Ginny?" They all turned to see Lupin and Bill standing in the middle of the corridor, looking stunned at the appearance of the Hogwarts students.

"Lupin!" Liza exclaimed.

"Bill!" Ginny shouted at the same time.

"There are Death Eaters in the school! We just saw them!" Ron said quickly.

"What—?" Lupin said.

"It's true, we saw them!" Ginny said. "There was a whole group of them, they came out of that corridor, it's full of Peruvian Darkness Powder!"

"Are—are you sure?" Bill asked.

"YES!" Ron and Liza shouted.

"I—Okay," Lupin said, still looking shocked. "Do you know where they were heading?"

"No idea," Liza said.

"But we have to find them!" Sally-Anne said, her voice a bit higher than normal. "Death Eaters can't be in the school!" Bill pulled his wand out and waved it. A silver figure burst from the end of his wand; his Patronus.

"I'm sending a message to the others," he explained to the students, who were looking confused.

"Wands out," Lupin said. "We have to find them."

Lupin led the way down the corridor. The six students followed him, and Bill brought up the rear. They turned the corner into another hall, and ahead of them was the group of Death Eaters, moving swiftly down the corridor.

Fury bubbled up in Liza's chest. There was no way they could allow the Death Eaters to remain in the school. Suddenly, there was a burst of light, and part of the stone wall next to the Death Eaters exploded. Liza heard Bill curse quietly as the Death Eaters turned to see who had cast a spell at them.

"It's the Order!" one of the Death Eaters shouted. They all drew their wands as well, firing spells back down the corridor.

" _Protego_!" Liza shouted, throwing a shield in front of herself, John, and Sally-Anne. She could feel the Death Eaters' spells bouncing off of it and hitting the walls instead. Then the Death Eaters turned and ran.

"After them!" Lupin shouted, and he and Bill hurtled down the hall. The six students followed as well.

"Where are they going?" Ginny asked, panting. The Death Eaters came to a stop at the foot of some stairs.

"That's the Astronomy Tower," Liza said, ducking behind a suit of armor as another spell flew past them.

"Why do they want to go up there?" Sally-Anne asked. Liza stepped into the corridor and sent a curse at one of the Death Eaters while trying to take in what was happening around her.

The entire corridor was filled with bright lights and blasts. One of the Death Eaters was continually firing the Killing Curse down the hall. Surprisingly, everything seemed to miss Liza and the others; Liza assumed it was because of the Felix Felicis. In the middle of the fighting, Tonks and Professor McGonagall arrived, running towards the Death Eaters to assist Lupin and Bill.

There was a heavy thud as one of the Death Eaters fell down the stairs, having been hit with a Killing Curse from one of his fellow Death Eaters. Sally-Anne let out a gasp next to Liza. Then there was a yell.

"NO!" Ginny shouted. Liza quickly turned her head to see Bill being tackled by one of the Death Eaters. She watched as the Death Eater began to attack Bill with his bare hands and what looked like his teeth.

"Greyback!" Lupin shouted savagely. He sent a string of curses towards the Death Eater, and Liza was able to catch a glimpse of his face. His eyes were glinting madly in the lights of the various curses flashing in the corridor.

Then, suddenly, a few of the Death Eaters ran up the stairs, heading for the Astronomy Tower.

"They're getting away!" Liza shouted. Neville hurtled towards the stairs but was stopped by an invisible barrier. He was thrown up into the air, crashed into the wall, and crumbled to the ground.

"Neville!" Ginny shouted, but she couldn't reach him. Liza threw a few curses towards the Death Eaters nearest her, ducked, and ran over to Neville.

"Nev!" she said loudly, shaking his shoulder. "Neville, wake up!" She grabbed his wrist and could feel a pulse under her fingers.

"Is he all right?" Liza looked up to see John standing over her and Neville.

"Yeah, I think he's just been knocked out," Liza said. "He'll be okay once he sees Madam Pomfrey." She turned to see some of the others attempting to get through the barrier at the bottom of the stairs.

"Liza!" Sally-Anne hurried over to her, sending a few spells around to clear her path. "I just saw Snape, he just ran up those stairs!"

"How did he get through?" Liza asked, standing up again. She watched as Lupin ran to the stairs and was thrown back, just as Neville had. Then a spell whizzed past Liza's head, barely missing her. She, Sally-Anne, and John ducked before sending a string of various spells towards the large Death Eater who was still sending Killing Curses everywhere.

Then there was a loud noise, and Liza was being pushed out of the way. She fell to the ground, and the corridor was filled with dust. She heard Sally-Anne coughing next to her.

"What happened?" Sally-Anne asked.

"The roof just caved in," John reported. Liza looked up to see him hunched over her and Sally-Anne; he had pushed them out of the way. "That big Death Eater cast a spell that cracked the ceiling…"

Liza hurried to stand up. She, Sally-Anne, and John turned to see Snape leading Malfoy down from the Astronomy Tower. The members of the Order surged forward towards the stairs as the rest of the Death Eaters came back down. The corridor was filled with blasts of light once again as the battle restarted.

But then the Death Eaters were leaving. They were running down the corridor, and the Order members were chasing after them. Liza stopped halfway down the hall and looked back to where Neville was stirring feebly against the wall.

"Neville!" she said, hurrying back to him.

"Liza, the Death Eaters—!" Sally-Anne started.

"There are plenty of Order members and Aurors here to stop them," Liza said, kneeling down beside Neville. "We have to get him to the hospital wing. Neville, do you think you can stand?"

"I think so," Neville said weakly.

"Sally-Anne, help me," Liza instructed. She and Sally-Anne pulled Neville to his feet, draping his arms over their shoulders. Then, slowly, they made their way down to the hospital wing.

"Madam Pomfrey!" Liza called when they pushed open the hospital wing doors. Madam Pomfrey bustled up to them at once.

"Is it true?" she asked. "Are there really Death Eaters in the school?"

"There were," Liza said. "We don't know what happened to them, we stopped to make sure we got Neville to the hospital wing—"

"Liza!" Hermione and Luna came running down the ward.

"Hermione, Luna," Liza breathed in relief. "What happened, where were you?"

"Well, we waited outside Snape's office," Hermione explained. "Then Flitwick showed up, said something about Death Eaters in the school, and then he went into the office to get Snape. Snape came out and told us that Flitwick had fainted and that we should see to him. What happened to you? You're bleeding, both of you, and Neville—?"

"There was a fight," Liza said. "Neville was smashed into the wall and lost consciousness for a while."

"Bring him over here," Madam Pomfrey instructed, having made up a bed for him. Liza and Sally-Anne helped Neville over to the bed and made him lie down on it.

"'M all right," Neville mumbled as he settled into the bed. Madam Pomfrey ran her wand over him, murmuring under her breath.

"Concussion," she said finally. "Mild bruising. I'll be right back." She hurried away, and a few minutes later returned with two goblets full of different potions. "Drink this," she instructed, handing one goblet over to Neville. Neville drank it, grimacing at the taste. Madam Pomfrey took the goblet and gave Neville the other one wordlessly.

"Sleeping draft," Madam Pomfrey explained to the girls as Neville drank this potion as well. "He'll need to start sleeping this off."

Then the hospital wing doors opened. Lupin and Tonks entered the ward, carrying Bill between them. Hermione gasped from, putting her hands to her mouth. Bill's face had been slashed so horribly that Liza could hardly recognize him. There was blood dripping from his open wounds. Ron and John entered the room behind the Order members; Ron looked very pale.

"Bring him here!" Madam Pomfrey commanded. Lupin and Tonks hauled Bill over to the bed Madam Pomfrey pointed to. Then Madam Pomfrey bent over Bill, setting to work immediately.

"What happened?" Liza asked at once. "What happened to the Death Eaters? Did they escape?"

"Yes," Lupin said heavily. "They took the Malfoy boy with them."

"Malfoy has been planning this all year!" Liza exclaimed. "He's the reason they were able to get into the school tonight."

"I know," Lupin said. He and Tonks watched over Bill as Madam Pomfrey continued to work. Liza turned to Ron.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Ron nodded, looking at a loss for words. Liza stepped forward and hugged him tightly. When she let go, Ron joined Hermione, Sally-Anne, and Luna to watch Madam Pomfrey. Liza looked at John wearily before stepping into his arms. He pulled her in tightly for a moment, pressing a kiss onto her head.

"Everything all right?" she asked him softly, pulling away. She reached up and touched a cut just above his eye.

"I'm fine," John said. "I was worried when I couldn't find you after we chased the Death Eaters from the castle."

"Your father wasn't one of them, was he?" Liza asked fearfully.

"No," John replied. "It would've been nice if they hadn't all escaped, though."

"I know what you mean," Liza said. She paused and then frowned before asking, "Do you know where Ginny is?"

"She was looking for Harry," John answered. "She said that she saw him show up during the fight and chased after Snape and Malfoy."

"Harry's back?" Liza asked. Relief flooded her body. "That means Dumbledore's back, too. I wonder where he was then? You'd think he would've joined us in the battle."

"I don't know," John said. Then he gently guided her forward to join Ron, Hermione, Sally-Anne, and Luna.

They began a silent vigil over Bill's still body as Madam Pomfrey continued to do everything in her power to patch up his injuries. Liza wasn't sure how long they stood there when the hospital wing doors opened again. She turned to see Ginny leading Harry into the ward. He looked exhausted, and Liza ran to him.

"Thank Merlin you're safe," she murmured. Harry hugged her back silently, and Liza knew he was surveying the crowd in the hospital.

"Are you all right, Harry?" Lupin asked after Liza pulled away.

"I'm fine…" Harry answered. "How's Bill?" He glanced over at Bill, and when nobody answered his question, he added to Madam Pomfrey, "Can't you fix them with a charm or something?"

"No charm will work on these," Madam Pomfrey said sorrowfully. "I've tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites."

"But he wasn't bitten at the full moon," Ron said. "Greyback hadn't transformed, so surely Bill won't be a—a real—?" He looked up hopefully at Lupin.

"No, I don't think that Bill will be a true werewolf," Lupin said, "but that does not mean that there won't be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and—and Bill might have some wolfish characteristics from now on."

"Dumbledore might know something that'd work, though," Ron said thoughtfully. "Where is he? Bill fought those maniacs on Dumbledore's orders, Dumbledore owes him, he can't leave him in this state—"

"Ron—Dumbledore's dead," Ginny said simply.

It was as though Liza's insides had been dipped into an icy bath. _Dumbledore can't be dead,_ she thought desperately. She felt John's hand take hers, anchoring her to the present.

"No!" Lupin gasped. He looked between Ginny and Harry for a moment before falling into the empty chair next to Bill's bed. He put his hands over his face, looking utterly defeated.

"How did he die?" Tonks asked in a hushed voice. "How did it happen?"

"Snape killed him," Harry stated.

"But— _Snape_?" Liza couldn't help saying, gaping at her brother.

"I was there, I saw it," Harry said. "We arrived back on the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was… Dumbledore was ill, he was weak, but I think he realized it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilized me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak—and then Malfoy came through the door and disarmed him—" There were faint gasps among the group. "—more Death Eaters arrived—and then Snape—and Snape did it. The _Avada Kedavra_ ," Harry finished. Madam Pomfrey began to cry.

"Shh!" Ginny hissed. "Listen!"

Everyone quieted immediately. From somewhere nearby, they could hear a phoenix singing over the grounds. They all stood in silence, listening to the song, feeling the grief that had settled throughout the room.

It seemed like a long time before the hospital wing doors opened. Professor McGonagall strode into the room.

"Molly and Arthur are on their way," she announced. The trance from the music was broken, and they all turned to her. "Harry, what happened? According to Hagrid you were with Professor Dumbledore when he—when it happened. He says Professor Snape was involved in some—"

"Snape killed Dumbledore," Harry said bluntly. Professor McGonagall stared at Harry for a moment, looking as though she was going to faint. Madam Pomfrey rushed forward and conjured a chair from her wand so that Professor McGonagall could sit.

"Snape," she said. "We all wondered…but he trusted…always… _Snape_ …I can't believe it…"

"Snape was a highly accomplished Occlumens," Lupin said. "We always knew that."

"But Dumbledore swore he was on our side!" Tonks said. "I always thought Dumbledore must know something about Snape that we didn't…"

"He always hinted that he had an ironclad reason for trusting Snape," Professor McGonagall continued. "I mean…with Snape's history…of course people were bound to wonder…but Dumbledore told me explicitly that Snape's repentance was absolutely genuine… Wouldn't hear a word against him!"

"I'd love to know what Snape told him to convince him," Tonks added.

"I know," Harry spoke up. Everyone looked at him, and he explained, "Snape passed Voldemort the information that made Voldemort hunt down my mum and dad. Then Snape told Dumbledore he hadn't realized what he was doing, he was really sorry he'd don't it, sorry that they were dead." Liza let out a whimper, and John put his hand on the small of her back.

"And Dumbledore believed that?" Lupin asked. "Dumbledore believed Snape was sorry James was dead? Snape _hated_ James…"

"And he didn't think my mother was worth a damn either," Harry said, "because she was Muggleborn… 'Mudblood,' he called her…" There were silent tears streaming down Liza's face.

"This is all my fault," Professor McGonagall said after a few moments of silence. "My fault. I sent Filius to fetch Snape tonight, I actually sent for him to come and help us! If I hadn't alerted Snape to what was going on, he might never had joined forces with the Death Eaters. I don't think he knew they were there before Filius told him, I don't think he knew they were coming."

"It isn't your fault, Minerva," Lupin said. "We all wanted more help, we were glad to think Snape was on his way…"

"So when he arrived at the fight, he joined in on the Death Eaters' side?" Harry asked.

"I don't know exactly how it happened," Professor McGonagall confessed. "It's all so confusing… Dumbledore had told us that he would be leaving the school for a few hours and that we were to patrol the corridors just in case…Remus, Bill, and Nymphadora were to join us…and so we patrolled. All seemed quiet. Every secret passageway out of the school was covered. We knew nobody could fly in. There were powerful enchantments on every entrance into the castle. I still don't know how the Death Eaters can possible have entered…"

"I do," Harry said. He went on to tell them about the Vanishing Cabinets, and that Malfoy had repaired them so that they created a passage. The item he had been asking about at Borgin and Burkes was a second Vanishing Cabinet to match the one that was in the castle. "So they got in through the Room of Requirement," Harry finished. He looked around at his friends.

"I messed up, Harry," Ron said, looking a bit distraught.

"We did like you told us," Liza sniffed. "We checked the Marauder's Map and we couldn't see Malfoy on it, so we thought he must be in the Room of Requirement."

"So me, Neville, Ginny, Liza, Sally-Anne, and John went to keep watch on it…" Ron continued. "But Malfoy got past us."

"He came out of the room about an hour after we started keeping watch," Ginny went on. "He was on his own, clutching that awful shriveled arm—"

"His Hand of Glory," Ron cut in. "Gives light only to the holder, remember?"

"Anyway, he must have been checking whether the coast was clear to let the Death Eaters out," Ginny said, "because the moment he was us he threw something into the air and it all went pitch-black—"

"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder," Ron scowled. "Fred's and George's. I'm going to be having a word with them about who they let buy their products."

"We tried everything, Lumos, Incendio," Ginny said. "Nothing would penetrate the darkness; all we could do was grope our way out of the corridor again, and meanwhile we could hear people rushing past us. Obviously Malfoy could see because of that hand thing and was guiding them, but we didn't dare use any curses or anything in case we hit each other, and by the time we'd reached a corridor that was light, they'd gone."

"Luckily," Lupin said, "the six of you ran into us immediately and told us what had happened. We found the Death Eaters minutes later, heading in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. Malfoy obviously hadn't expected more people to be on the watch; he seemed to have exhausted his supply of Darkness Powder, at any rate. A fight broke out, they scattered and we gave chase. One of them, Gibbon, broke away and headed up the tower stairs—"

"To set off the Mark?" Harry asked.

"He must have done, yes, they must have arranged that before they left the Room of Requirement," Lupin said. "But I don't think Gibbon liked the idea of waiting up there alone for Dumbledore, because he came running back downstairs to rejoin the fight and was hit by a Killing Curse that just missed me."

"So if Ron was watching the Room of Requirement with all of you," Harry said, turning towards Hermione, "were you—?"

"Outside Snape's office, yes," Hermione said, "with Luna. We hung around for ages outside it and nothing happened… We didn't know what was going on upstairs, Ron had taken the map… It was nearly midnight when Professor Flitwick came sprint down into the dungeons. He was shouting about Death Eaters in the castle, I don't think he really registered that Luna and I were there at all, he just burst his way into Snape's office and we heard him saying that Snape had to go back with him and help and then we heard a loud thump and Snape came hurtling out of his room and he saw us and—and—"

"What?" Harry asked.

"I was so stupid, Harry!" Hermione said. "He said Professor Flitwick had collapsed and that we should go and take care of him while he—while he went to help fight the Death Eaters—" She hid her face in her hands. "We went into his office to see if we could help Professor Flitwick and found him unconscious on the floor…and oh, it's so obvious now, Snape must have Stupefied Flitwick, but we didn't realize, Harry, we didn't realize, we just let Snape go!"

"It's not your fault," Lupin insisted. "Hermione, had you not obeyed Snape and got out of the way, he probably would have killed you and Luna."

"So then he came upstairs," Harry said, "and he found the place where you were all fighting…"

"We were in trouble, we were losing," Tonks said. "Gibbon was down, but the rest of the Death Eaters seemed ready to fight to the death. Neville had been hurt, Bill had been savaged by Greyback… It was all dark…curses flying everywhere… The Malfoy boy had vanished, he must have slipped past, up the stairs…then more of them ran after him, but one of them blocked the stair behind them with some kind of curse… Neville ran at it and got thrown up into the air—"

"None of us could break through it," Ron continued, "and that massive Death Eater was still firing off jinxes all over the place, they were bouncing off the walls and barely missing us…"

"And then Snape was there," Tonks said, frowning, "and then he wasn't—"

"I saw him running toward us, but that huge Death Eater's jinx just missed me right afterward and I ducked and lost track of things," Ginny said.

"I saw him run straight through the barrier and up the stairs," Sally-Anne volunteered quietly.

"I tried to follow him, but was thrown back just like Neville," Lupin said.

"He must have known a spell we didn't," Professor McGonagall said. "After all—he was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher… I just assumed that he was in a hurry to chase after the Death Eaters who'd escaped up to the tower…"

"He was," Harry growled, "but to help them, not to stop them…and I'll bet you had to have a Dark Mark to get through that barrier—so what happened when he came back down?"

"Well, the big Death Eater had just fired off a hex that caused half the ceiling to fall in, and also broke the curse blocking the stairs," Lupin said. "We all ran forward—those of us who were still standing anyway—and then Snape and the boy emerged from the dust—obviously, none of us attacked them—"

"We just let them pass," Tonks said. "We thought they were being chased by the Death Eaters—and next thing, the other Death Eaters and Greyback were back and we were fighting again—I thought I heard Snape shout something, but I don't know what—"

"He shouted, 'It's over,'" Harry said. "He'd done what he'd meant to do."

There was silence again, and they could hear the singing phoenix once more. Liza wiped the tears from under her eyes, leaning against John, who put his arm around her shoulders.

Then the hospital wing doors burst open once again. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hurried into the ward, followed closely by Fleur, who looked panicked.

"Molly—Arthur—" Professor McGonagall gasped. She jumped up and went to greet them. "I am so sorry—"

"Bill," Mrs. Weasley said in a strangled voice, spotting her son lying in the bed. "Oh, _Bill_!" She rushed over to her eldest son, sobbing and kissing his forehead.

"You said Greyback attacked him?" Mr. Weasley asked, looking at Professor McGonagall. "But he hadn't transformed? So what does that mean? What will happen to Bill?"

"We don't yet know," Professor McGonagall admitted, looking to Lupin.

"There will probably be some contamination, Arthur," Lupin said. "It is an odd case, possibly unique… We don't know what his behavior might be like when he awakens…" Meanwhile, Mrs. Weasley had taken the ointment Madam Pomfrey had been using on Bill and began to tend to him herself.

"And Dumbledore…" Mr. Weasley prompted unsteadily. "Minerva, is it true? Is he really…?" Professor McGonagall merely nodded.

"Dumbledore gone," Mr. Weasley murmured, the grief obvious in his voice. Mrs. Weasley and Fleur, however, couldn't take their eyes away from Bill.

"Of course, it doesn't matter how he looks…" Mrs. Weasley said through her tears. "It's not r-really important…but he was a very handsome little b-boy…always very handsome…and he was g-going to be married!"

"And what do you mean by zat?" Fleur spoke up, sounding almost angry. "What do you mean, ''e was _going_ to be married?'"

"Well—" Mrs. Weasley said, startled. "—only that—"

"You theenk Bill will not wish to marry me anymore?" Fleur asked. "You theenk, because of these bites, he will not love me?"

"No, that's not what I—" Mrs. Weasley began.

"Because 'e will!" Fleur declared. "It would take more zan a werewolf to stop Bill loving me!"

"Well, yes, I'm sure," Mrs. Weasley said, "but I thought perhaps—given how—how he—"

"You thought I would not weesh to marry him? Or per'aps, you hoped?" Fleur asked. "What do I care how he looks? I am good-looking enough for the both of us, I theenk! All these scars show is zat my husband is brave! And I shall do zat!" She pulled the ointment from Mrs. Weasley's limp hands and pushed past her to start dabbing at Bill's injuries. Nobody else knew what to say, and Mrs. Weasley stared at Fleur.

"Our Great-Auntie Muriel," Mrs. Weasley started, "has a very beautiful tiara—goblin-made—which I am sure I could persuade her to lend you for the wedding. She is very fond of Bill, you know, and it would look lovely with your hair."

"Thank you," Fleur said. "I am sure zat will be lovely."

There was a brief moment of silence, and then suddenly Mrs. Weasley and Fleur were sobbing into each others' arms. Liza couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her face; she always knew that Fleur wasn't as bad as Ginny and Hermione had always thought.

"You see!" Tonks cried. Liza quickly turned to see her staring at Lupin. "She still wants to marry him, even though he's been bitten! She doesn't care!"

"It's different," Lupin said stiffly, refusing to look at her. "Bill will not be a full werewolf. The cases are completely—"

"But I don't care either, I don't care!" Tonks exclaimed. "I've told you a million times…" Liza felt her jaw drop as she realized that Tonks must have had feelings for Lupin.

"And I've told _you_ a million times," Lupin said, "that I am too old for you, too poor…too dangerous…"

"I've said all along you're taking a ridiculous line on this, Remus," Mrs. Weasley said over Fleur's shoulder.

"I am not being ridiculous," Lupin insisted. "Tonks deserves somebody young and whole."

"But she wants you," Mr. Weasley said. "And after all, Remus, young and whole men do not necessarily remain so." He looked down to at his son laying in the hospital bed.

"This is…not the moment to discuss it," Lupin said, refusing to look at anyone. "Dumbledore is dead…"

"Dumbledore would have been happier than anybody to think that there was a little more love in the world," Professor McGonagall said.

"Let yourself be happy, Remus," Liza added softly. There was a pained look on Lupin's face as he looked at the floor instead of at anyone else. The hospital wing doors opened once again, and this time Hagrid joined the group.

"I've…I've done it, Professor," he told Professor McGonagall, holding a large handkerchief up to his face. "M-moved him. Professor Sprout's got the kids back in bed. Professor Slughorn says the Ministry's bin informed."

"Thank you, Hagrid," Professor McGonagall said. She looked around at the others gathered around Bill's bed. "I shall have to see the Ministry when they get here. Hagrid, please tell the Heads of Houses—Slughorn can represent Slytherin—that I want to see them in my office forthwith. I would like you to join us too." Hagrid nodded his large head, turned, and left the ward, tears still leaking from his eyes.

"Before I meet them I would like a quick word with you, Harry," Professor McGonagall said. "If you'll come with me…"

"See you in a bit," Harry said to the others before standing and following Professor McGonagall from the ward.

"What do you think Professor McGonagall is going to talk to the other Heads about?" Liza asked after the door had shut behind Harry and the professor. Liza turned to look at the other adults in the room.

"Probably about the fate of the school," Lupin said, wiping his hand over his face. "They might think about closing it next year and possibly sending you all home early this year."

"You all should get to your dormitories," Mr. Weasley added. "You'll need to get some sleep."

As one, the remaining Hogwarts students stood and murmured their farewells to the adults. None of them complained to being sent off to bed. They silently made their way through the corridors, saying goodbye to Luna and John when they parted ways for the respective common rooms.

When they reached the common room, Ron gave the password, and they all clambered in. The common room was packed full of students, and they all looked to the five fellow Gryffindors.

"Is it true?" Katie Bell spoke up as the common room grew silent. "Is Dumbledore dead?" Liza was unsurprised that the rumors had already spread throughout the school.

"Yes," Ron said tiredly but clearly for the whole house to hear. The students around them huddled together with their friends, whispering to each other and looking grief-stricken.

"I'm going up to bed," Sally-Anne said. "I can't stay down here."

"Neither can I," Hermione agreed. The two girls left for their dormitory, followed by Ginny.

"I'm going up to bed to wait for Harry," Ron said quietly.

"I'm coming with you," Liza said.

"But—"

"Don't argue with me tonight," Liza interrupted. "I want to make sure Harry's okay."

So the two of them went up to the boys' dormitory to wait for Harry. They didn't have to wait too long, and soon Harry joined them. He moved to his bed and sat down on it, facing Ron and Liza on Ron's bed.

"They're talking about closing the school," Harry said after a moment.

"Lupin said they would," Liza said. There was another pause.

"So?" Ron asked. "Did you find one? Did you get it? A—a Horcrux?" Harry shook his head, and Liza and Ron exchanged disappointed looks.

"You didn't get it?" Ron questioned. "It wasn't there?"

"No," Harry replied. "Someone had already taken it and left a fake in its place."

"Already _taken_ —?" Liza began in disbelief. Harry pulled something from his pocket, pried it open, and passed it to Ron and Liza. There was a note inside of it.

 _To the Dark Lord_

 _I know I will be dead long before you read this but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hop that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more._

 _R.A.B._

"R.A.B.?" Ron asked. "But who was that?"

"Dunno," Harry said. He laid back on his bed and stared at the ceiling of his four-poster bed. Liza watched him for a few moments, but she knew that nothing she could say or do would make up for the loss of Dumbledore.

It had finally sunk in. Liza felt defeated. Dumbledore, their leader against Voldemort, was gone.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: I'm fairly certain that there will only be one more chapter! Stay tuned.**_


	20. Chapter 20 The Funeral

_**A/N: It's a short chapter, but it's the last chapter. Enjoy!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

 **Chapter 20 – The Funeral**

All classes and exams had been cancelled until further notice. Over the next few days, many students were taken out of the school by their parents or other family members. Some of the students went quietly, but others put up a fight. Seamus Finnigan had a very loud argument with his mother in the middle of the Entrance Hall, and Mrs. Finnigan finally agreed to let him stay until after Dumbledore's funeral.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were staying at Hogwarts with Fleur so they could stay by Bill's side. Liza, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Harry visited the hospital wing twice a day. Bill's personality seemed unchanged by his encounter with Greyback, but he now preferred to eat his steaks on the raw side.

"…so eet ees lucky 'e is marrying me," Fleur said cheerfully about this change, "because ze British overcook their meat, I 'ave always said this."

"I suppose I'm just going to have to accept that he really is going to marry her," Ginny said on the evening before Dumbledore's funeral. She, Liza, Hermione, Ron, and Harry were sitting in a window in the Gryffindor common room.

"She's not that bad," Harry said. Ginny raised an eyebrow at him, and he quickly added, "Ugly, though." Ginny snorted.

"Well, I suppose if Mum can stand it, I can," she conceded.

"Anyone else we know died?" Ron asked, looking to Hermione. She was holding a copy of the _Evening Prophet_ in her hands.

"No," Hermione said. "They're still looking for Snape but no sign…"

"Of course there isn't," Harry growled. "They won't find Snape till they find Voldemort, and seeing as they've never managed to do that in all this time…" There was a moment of silence.

"I'm going to go to bed," Ginny said. "I haven't been sleeping that well since…well…I could do with some sleep." She stood up, kissed Harry, waved to the others, and left for the girls' staircase.

"Harry," Hermione said as soon as Ginny was gone, "I found something out this morning, in the library."

"R.A.B.?" Harry asked. He had shown Hermione the locket the morning after Dumbledore had died, and ever since then, Hermione had been spending an awful lot of time in the library.

"No," Hermione said. "I've been trying, Harry, but I haven't found anything… There are a couple of reasonably well-known wizards with those initials—Rosalind Antigone Bungs…Rupert 'Axebaner' Brookstanton…but they don't seem to fit at all. Judging by that note, the person who stole the Horcrux knew Voldemort, and I can't find a shred of evidence that Bungs or Axebanger ever had anything to do with him… No, actually, it's about…well, Snape." Hermione watched anxiously as Harry flopped back in his seat.

"What about him?" Liza prompted quietly.

"Well, it's just that I was sort of right about the Half-Blood Prince business," she began.

"D'you have to rub it in, Hermione?" Harry groaned. "How d'you think I feel about that now?" The same morning he had shown Hermione the locket, he had told them all about finding out the Half-Blood Prince had been Snape all along.

"No—no—Harry, I didn't mean that!" Hermione insisted. "It's just that I was right about Eileen Prince once owning the book. You see…she was Snape's mother!"

"I thought she wasn't much of a looker," Ron commented meanly.

"Shush," Liza said, waving her hand at him.

"I was going through the rest of the old _Prophets_ and there was a tiny announcement about Eileen Prince marrying a man called Tobias Snape," Hermione explained, "and then later an announcement saying that she'd given birth to a—"

"—murderer," Harry finished for her.

"Well…yes," Hermione said. "So…I was sort of right. Snape must have been proud of being 'half a Prince,' you see? Tobias Snape was a Muggle from what it said in the _Prophet_."

"Yeah, that fits," Harry said. "He'd play up the pure-blood side so he could get in with Lucius Malfoy and the rest of them… He's just like Voldemort. Pure-blood mother, Muggle father…ashamed of his parentage, trying to make himself feared using the Dark Arts, gave himself an impressive new name— _Lord_ Voldemort—the Half-Blood _Prince_ —how could Dumbledore have missed—?" Harry stopped, a pained look crossing his face.

"Dumbledore always wanted to believe the best of people," Liza said softly, shrugging.

"I still don't get why Snape didn't turn you in for using the book," Ron said. "He must've known where you were getting it all from."

"He knew," Harry said. "He knew when I used Sectumsempra. He didn't really need Legilimency… He might even have known before then, with Slughorn talking about how brilliant I was at Potions… Shouldn't have left his old book in the bottom of that cupboard, should he?"

"But why didn't he turn you in?" Liza asked.

"I don't think he wanted to associate himself with that book," Hermione guessed. "I don't think Dumbledore would have liked it very much if he'd known. And even if Snape pretended it hadn't been his, Slughorn would have recognized his writing at once. Anyway, the book was left in Snape's old classroom, and I'll bet Dumbledore knew his mother was called 'Prince.'"

"I should've shown the book to Dumbledore," Harry said. "All that time he was showing me how Voldemort was evil even when he was at school, and I had proof Snape was too—"

"'Evil' is a strong word," Hermione pointed out.

"You were the one who kept telling me the book was dangerous!" Harry said incredulously.

"I'm trying to say, Harry, that you're putting too much blame on yourself," Hermione said. "I thought the Prince seemed to have a nasty sense of humor, but I would never have guessed he was a potential killer…"

"None of us could've guessed Snape would…you know," Ron added.

They all stopped talking then. Liza looked out at the grounds, bathed in moonlight. She was having a hard time believing that the next day they would be burying Dumbledore. The Hogwarts Express would be taking all the students home that day, as well.

The next morning, Liza's dormitory was silent as the four sixth-year girls packed their things for the journey later that day. The one missing was Parvati, who had been picked up with her sister the morning after Dumbledore had died.

Soon it was time for breakfast. The Great Hall was filled with students, all sitting at their respective tables. The staff sat at the front of the room; Hagrid was the only one missing from the table. Dumbledore's chair had been left vacant, and the Minister of Magic was sitting in Snape's usual spot.

Finally, as everyone had finished up their meal, Professor McGonagall stood from her seat.

"It is nearly time," she announced. "Please follow your Heads of Houses out into the grounds. Gryffindors, after me."

The Gryffindors led the way out of the castle. Liza followed Professor McGonagall and her friends down to the lake. There had been chairs placed along the edge of the water, with an aisle down the middle. The chairs were facing a marble altar.

There were already people sitting in the chairs. Liza spotted the rest of the Weasley family sitting together with the other members of the Order of the Phoenix. Liza recognized some of the others sitting around, although she didn't know their names.

Professor McGonagall was ushering the Gryffindors into the rows of chairs. Liza followed Hermione into one of the rows. She found herself sitting between Hermione and Sally-Anne. On Hermione's other side were Ron, Harry, and Ginny.

Liza felt as though she was in a dream. She watched as other people sat in the chairs, recognizing some of them but not everyone. Minutes continued to pass, and Liza found herself wishing that she could be sitting with John. She craned her head around the crowd to see if she could find him, but there were too many people.

"Liza," Sally-Anne whispered, tugging gently on Liza's sleeve. Liza turned around to see Hagrid walking slowly up the aisle, holding something in his arms. With a jolt, Liza realized that it was Dumbledore's body, wrapped up in a sheet of purple velvet. Tears sprang to her eyes immediately; seeing Dumbledore's body brought a sharp shock to Liza's system. She took hold of Sally-Anne's hand, which was shaking.

Hagrid stopped at the marble altar and placed Dumbledore's body on top of it. Then Hagrid retreated back down the aisle, and a small wizard in plain black robes stood up next to the altar. He began to speak about Dumbledore, but the words didn't register with Liza. All she could do was stare at the body that had once been such a great man.

The man finished his speech after only a few minutes. Liza looked around expectantly, assuming that someone else was going to get up and talk, but nobody did. Then, suddenly, white flames burst around Dumbledore's body. There were several shouts of alarm. But then the flames disappeared, and there was now a white marble tomb surrounding Dumbledore's body.

And just like that, it was over. People were getting up, murmuring to each other. Liza looked at Sally-Anne.

"You all right?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sally-Anne replied, tears still glistening on her cheeks. "I don't—Hogwarts is my home. I don't want to leave." Liza frowned, and Sally-Anne gave her a grim smile. "My mother died a few years back. My father is a Muggle; he's never shown much interest in what happens in the Wizarding world. But this time, I think he'll try and keep me at home with him. After what happened the night Dumbledore died, I can't just sit idly by."

"Come home with me," Liza said immediately. Sally-Anne looked startled. "Dumbledore told me that I would have work to do soon, and I'm sure I'll need all the help I can get. We've got room for you to stay with us. Come with me." Sally-Anne stared at Liza for a moment longer.

"All right," she agreed. Liza gave her a small smile. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Harry get up from his seat and walk away.

"Harry!" she said, getting up and running after her brother. Harry paused, waiting as she caught up to him. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," Harry answered. He glanced at Liza before trudging along the bank of the lake. Liza followed him. "I split up with Ginny," Harry added quietly.

"You what?" Liza asked, startled.

"I can't risk anyone else's lives," Harry said. "Voldemort uses people who are close to me to get to me, he's been doing it for years. I just want to keep her safe."

"Harry, you don't need to make yourself miserable to beat Voldemort," Liza said. "I tried to break it off with John last year to protect him, and look how well that one worked out."

"This is different," Harry insisted.

"I know you think that, but you also know that Ginny's not going to give up fighting," Liza pointed out. "She'll fight for you, and her family, and her friends, and she won't ever stop."

"I know," Harry murmured. He gave Liza a ghost of a smile. "That's one of the things I like so much about her."

"Harry!" another voice called. Harry and Liza stopped and looked to see Scrimgeour limping towards them.

"I've been hoping to have a word…" Scrimgeour said as he neared the twins. "Would you mind if I had a word with Harry alone?" Liza looked at Harry, whose jaw was set determinedly.

"Sure," Liza said. She walked back towards the group of mourners still lingering along the shore near Dumbledore's tomb. Finally, she spotted John standing by himself, watching her. She ran the last few feet to him, throwing her arms around his neck and gripping him tightly.

"I've got you," he said quietly, stroking her hair a few times as she took a few calming breaths. When she felt better, she pulled away so she could look into his face.

"Come home with me this summer," she said. "My parents would be more than willing to take you in with us, and I know you have nowhere to go." John smiled, and Liza cocked her head at him. "What?" she asked.

"I was half expecting you to give me the same speech as last year," he admitted.

"I made a promise to you," Liza said. "I told you I was going to start trusting you. I want to be with you, as a team." She took his hand in hers. "We're in this together, and we're going to fight together until the end."

"I like the sound of that," John said before pressing his lips to hers.

"Liza." Hermione and Ron had joined them. "Have you seen Harry?" Hermione asked.

"He was walking along the lake," Liza said. "Scrimgeour wanted a word." Hermione and Ron exchanged dark looks, and Liza didn't blame them. Instead she pointed to Harry's retreating back, and saw that Scrimgeour was hurrying away from him. Liza glanced at John.

"Go," he said simply, squeezing her hand before dropping it.

"Harry!" Hermione called, and she, Ron, and Liza hurried forward. Harry slowed his walk to let his friends catch up with him.

"What did Scrimgeour want?" Hermione asked.

"Same as he wanted at Christmas," Harry sighed. "Wanted me to give him inside information on Dumbledore and be the Ministry's new poster boy." Ron looked especially furious.

"Look, let me go back and hit Percy!" he said suddenly.

"No," Liza said sharply.

"It'll make me feel better!" Ron insisted. Harry, Liza, and Hermione all chuckled, although it was short-lived. Hermione turned towards the castle.

"I can't bear the idea that we might never come back," she said. "How can Hogwarts close?"

"Maybe it won't," Ron said, sounding hopeful. "We're not in any more danger here than we are at home, are we? Everywhere's the same now. I'd even say Hogwarts is safer, there are more wizards inside to defend the place. What d'you reckon, Harry?"

"I'm not coming back even if it does reopen," Harry stated. Liza, shocked, turned her head quickly to look at him.

"I knew you were going to say that," Hermione said. "But then what will you do?"

"I'm going back to the Dursleys' once more, because Dumbledore wanted me to," Harry said. "But it'll be a short visit, and then I'll be gone for good."

"But where will you go if you don't come back to school?" Hermione asked.

"I thought I might go back to Godric's Hollow," Harry replied. "For me, it started there, all of it. I've just got a feeling I need to go there. And I can visit my parents' graves, I'd like that." He looked at Liza sadly. "I wish you could come with me."

"I might have to," Liza said. "Dumbledore told me that Voldemort would be trying to infiltrate the Ministry next. Maybe Hogwarts won't be as safe as it used to be if that happens."

"What do you mean?" Ron asked, confused.

"If Voldemort takes over the Ministry, he's going to try and take over Hogwarts, too," Liza reasoned. "Especially now that Dumbledore's out of the picture. Do you really think that a bunch of Death Eaters would let me go to school if they were in charge? Not to mention all the Muggleborn students…" She trailed off, her mind racing. Dumbledore had told her that the Muggleborns would need protecting; maybe this was why?

"What else are you going to do, Harry?" Ron asked, looking back at his friend.

"I've got to track down the rest of the Horcruxes, haven't I?" Harry said, shrugging. "That's what he wanted me to do, that's why he told me all about them. If Dumbledore was right—and I'm sure he was—there are still four of them out there. I've got to find them and destroy them, and then I've got to go after the seventh bit of Voldemort's soul, the bit that's still in his body, and I'm the one who's going to kill him. And if I meet Severus Snape along the way, so much the better for me, so much the worse for him."

There was silence as Ron, Hermione, and Liza took in this last bit of information. The future was approaching much too quickly for Liza's taste; she just wanted to spend the afternoon on the Hogwarts grounds with her friends, soaking up the sun.

"We'll be there, Harry," Ron said suddenly.

"What?" Harry asked.

"At your aunt's and uncle's house," Ron clarified. "And then we'll go with you wherever you're going."

"No—" Harry protested.

"You said to us once before," Hermione cut in, "that there was time to turn back if we wanted to. We've had time, haven't we?"

"We're with you whatever happens," Ron said. "But mate, you're going to have to come round my mum's and dad's house before we do anything else, even Godric's Hollow."

"Why?" Harry asked.

"Bill and Fleur's wedding, remember?" Ron said. Harry stared at him for a moment.

"Yeah, we shouldn't miss that," Harry agreed.

They stood along the lake, watching the water ripple and the sun glint off the surface for a little while longer. But soon there was someone calling their names; Professor McGonagall was rounding up all the students.

"Potter, Weasley, Miss Granger, Miss Jones!" she shouted. "Come along, now, the Hogwarts Express will be leaving soon."

The four Gryffindors looked up at the castle once more. Liza made sure to take it all in; she didn't know when she would see it next. Then the four of them joined the rest of the students, ready to get onto the Hogwarts Express that would carry them on towards their future, whatever it would hold.

 **~LJ:HWA~**

 _ **A/N: And that's all for this one. There is one story left in this series! It's a bit weird to think about; I started writing this story five or more years ago; I can't even remember anymore. Anyways, the next story is going to be called**_ **This Is War** _ **and it might take me a bit longer to write. You'll see why, if you're interested in continuing the story. Thanks for reading!**_


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